COPENHAGEN, June 18 — Denmark’s state prosecutor searched the local headquarters of Nordea last week in relation to new developments in a money-laundering investigation into the region’s biggest bank.
The prosecutor has been investigating the lender over money laundering risks for the past three years. New information about possible breaches of the law triggered the raid, the prosecutor said.
The prosecutor had searched the headquarters in Copenhagen in August 2017 as part of the same investigation.
Banks in the Nordic region are facing intense scrutiny after Danske Bank, Denmark’s largest lender, became embroiled in a massive money laundering scandal at its Estonian branch
Swedbank suspended the two top executives at its Estonian business with immediate effect late yesterday, acting on an internal investigation into compliance with money-laundering rules at the bank.
Both physical, digital documents and e-mails were seized during the search of the building in Copenhagen on June 12, said Danish newspaper Borsen, the first to report the news, citing anonymous sources.
“The background for the operation is that new information has emerged about possible breaches of the money laundering legislation, which is now subject to criminal investigation,” public prosecutor Morten Jakobsen said in an emailed statement today.
Nordea took a €95 million (RM444 million) provision in April for a possible fine for alleged money laundering. Shares in Nordea traded 0.3 per cent lower at 1010 GMT today, having fallen around two per cent after news of the raid broke yesterday.
The search was regarding “the combat of money laundering in relation to past customers in the International Branch,” Nordea said in a statement.
“We fully cooperate with the prosecutors to ensure that they have access to all relevant information,” said Frank Vang-Jensen, head of Nordea in Denmark. — Reuters
