UBS, which is under pressure in the wake of a bruising legal battle in the US over tax evasion, wants to drop accounts for undeclared cash from European Union clients, the Sonntagszeitung newspaper has reported.

Scaling back on the controversial accounts would be the most radical step so far by the bank in moves to curb some of its offshore business.

UBS, the world's largest wealth manager in terms of assets, is already exiting the offshore business for US clients. It has agreed to pay a $780 fine to settle criminal charges that it helped wealthy US citizens evade taxes; however, the bank is resisting US attempts, in a separate civil action, to obtain details on thousands of US clients. UBS has also banned its client relationship managers from international travel.

The paper, citing a high-ranked UBS manager, said the bank would separate out untaxed assets and try to get rid of them.

"UBS exits the lucrative business of undeclared money," said the headline on the story.

UBS declined to comment on the report, according to Reuters. "We are assessing our crossborder business, but that is not new," a spokesperson said. "Everything else is speculation, which we don't comment on."

The bank did not immediately respond to WealthBriefing enquiries about the matter.

The offshore business with EU clients is much bigger than with US clients, although the bank does not disclose details on offshore accounts.

Sonntagszeitung said UBS clients from Germany, France, Britain and other EU countries would be moved to special units. They would no longer receive visits nor advice via telephone or email. Only a minimal service in Switzerland would be kept.

Swiss banks, especially UBS, have come under pressure as countries like the US and Germany step up the fight against tax evasion.