Swiss Agree on Program for Banks to Settle U.S. Dispute

Switzerland said it has agreed to a draft plan with the U.S. for the country’s banks to settle a tax-evasion dispute after years of diplomatic wrangling.

The Swiss Finance Ministry has been instructed to complete work on a joint statement with the U.S., the Bern-based government said in an announcement today. “It shouldn’t be too long” before the statement is signed, Andre Simonazzi, a government spokesman, told reporters in the Swiss capital.