Investigation Claims Credit Suisse Handled Dirty Money 反貪腐組織指控瑞信銀行 助客戶藏黑錢

People First Party Chairperson James Soong is reported to have a secret Credit Suisse account, in which he deposited over NT$400 million between 1993 and 2010. Soong has denied any wrongdoings.

The Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project has found that Credit Suisse handled billions of dollars in dirty money for decades. People First Party Chairperson James Soong's name appeared on the bank's list of clients in the Asian region. He opened an account in 1993 while governor of Taiwan province, and the highest balance was 13.67 million Swiss francs, or about NT$415 million. The account was closed in 2010. 

Soong attended an evening reception celebrating the birthday of the Japanese emperor on Feb. 22. He sought to clarify the facts, saying the accusations aren't based on facts and also citing errors in the reports as confirmation. He said he isn't ruling out legal action to defend his honor.

James Soong, Chairperson, People First Party: “I never participated in any meetings or negotiations related to the Lafayette frigate procurement. If there are individuals who are deliberately trying to discredit me, I'm sorry, but I will resort to legal action if necessary.”

The PFP also issued a statement. It said the content on the OCCRP's website and facts are inconsistent, and also cited errors in the reports. The party said Soong never participated in the Lafayette frigate procurement case and absolutely did not take kickbacks. It denounced certain individuals for using "literal translations" to criticize Soong and added it has already provided related evidence to clarify facts. The party said it hopes parties will stop spreading false information.

Vincent Chao, Potential DPP Taipei City Council Candidate: “I think many people will be disappointed and puzzled by Mr. Soong's response yesterday. Today, I think many people have doubts about the first point, which is why there was money in a Swiss bank account. The second is where this NT$415 million sum came from.”

Pan-green politicians said that although Soong was never prosecuted in the Chung Hsing Bills Finance and Lafayette cases, his response did nothing to dispel any doubts. They demanded that the PFP or Soong provide a response to their doubts about the bank account and the huge sum of money it contained.

瑞士瑞信銀行遭國際反貪腐組織（OCCRP）爆出涉黑錢醜聞，其中亞洲區客戶名單就出現親民黨主席宋楚瑜，在1993年擔任省主席時開戶，戶頭中最高餘額曾達到瑞士法郎1367萬，約為新臺幣4億1500萬，直到2010年該戶頭才停止運作，遭質疑是不法所得。宋楚瑜昨（22）日晚間出席日本天皇華誕慶祝酒會，親自嚴正澄清，指控內容並非事實，還引用錯誤報導來佐證，不排除提告、捍衛名譽。

宋楚瑜表示:「我從未參與任何拉法葉艦購買的會議、交涉會談，再有人或是故意在那裡抹黑，對不起，我一定訴諸法律。」

親民黨也發出聲明，強調網站內容完全與事實不符，甚至還引用錯誤報導的內容，並強調宋楚瑜從未介入拉法葉艦案購買及收取回扣。聲明中也指出，對於部分人士第一時間直譯外文向宋楚瑜提出質疑，目前已提出相關證據予以澄清，期盼各方莫再繼續散佈不實訊息。

民進黨台北市議員擬參選人趙怡翔則表示:「宋楚瑜先生昨天的回應，我想很多民眾會感到相當的失望跟不解。今天我覺得很多民眾的疑慮是針對第一點，為什麼會有這樣子的瑞士銀行帳戶存在，第二點就是這4億1500萬的鉅額款項，到底是從哪裡來的。」

綠營政治人物表示，雖然興票案和拉法葉案，宋楚瑜都沒有被起訴，而宋楚瑜的回應，仍舊無法平息外界的質疑，就呼籲親民黨或宋楚瑜，針對帳戶、巨額款項的疑點，清楚回應。