U.S., UBS have initialled deal in tax dispute

The U.S. government and Swiss bank UBS AG have initialled agreements to settle their tax evasion dispute, a U.S. government attorney said on Wednesday, ending weeks of tough negotiations between the two sides.

The settlement was expected to involve the disclosure to U.S. authorities of the names of thousands of wealthy American clients of UBS suspected of using offshore accounts at the bank to conceal assets and evade U.S. taxes.

(Reporting by Pascal Fletcher, Jim Loney, Jane Sutton; Editing by Pascal Fletcher)