Danske Bank boss quits over €200bn money-laundering scandal
The chief executive of Danske Bank has resigned in the wake of a money-laundering scandal involving its Estonian operation.
Thomas Borgen stepped down following an investigation into payments of about €200bn (£177bn) through its Estonian branch.
The Danish bank said many of those payments were suspicious.
Mr Borgen said it was clear Danske had failed to live up to its responsibilities, which he regretted.
“Even though the investigation conducted by the external law firm concludes that I have lived up to my legal obligations, I believe that it is best for all parties that I resign,” he said.
The bank said it was unable to determine how much money was believed to have been laundered through its Estonian branch between 2007 and 2015.
Shares in Danske fell 7% in Copenhagen following Mr Borgen’s resignation and a lowering of its outlook for the full year.
Estonia’s Financial Supervision Authority (FSA) said it was now examining the findings of Danske’s internal investigation.
“The report describes serious shortcomings in the organisation of Danske Bank, where risk-appetite and risk control were not in balance,” said the Estonian FSA’s chairman, Kilvar Kessler.
The watchdog and Denmark’s financial supervision authority will now consider taking action.
The FSA said that it had carried out thorough inspections of Danske Bank’s Estonian branch in 2014.
The following year the FSA said it ordered the bank to rectify flaws in its risk control organisation. That resulted in Danske’s Estonian branch no longer serving customers who did not live in the country.
‘Massive tax scam’
The branch’s handling of Russian and former Soviet money has also been the focus of an inquiry in Estonia itself.
International financier Bill Browder is one of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s most public critics.
He has long alleged that Danske’s Estonian branch was “one of the main conduits related to the fraud”.
Source: BBC
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