An attack by Switzerland on the list that forms the basis of the Group of 20 summit’s crackdown on tax evasion was batted away on Friday by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, which insisted Switzerland had not been stigmatised as a tax haven.

In a statement on a three-tier list issued by the OECD categorising tax havens and financial centres by their degree of co-operation, the Swiss finance ministry said: “President Hans-Rudolf Merz regrets this procedure. The list does not specify the criteria on the basis of which it was drawn up. Switzerland is not a tax haven.”