Julius Baer to pay 4.4 million Swiss francs after Swiss money laundering probe
[ZURICH] Julius Baer Group has been ordered to hand over 4.4 million Swiss francs (S$6.8 million) including profits that may have been earned unlawfully, after the Swiss regulator Finma found serious failings related to money laundering.
The Zurich-based bank had been under investigation over transactions that had occurred between 2009 and 2019 and linked to operations in Monaco and Singapore, according to a person familiar with the matter.
The previously undisclosed 'enforcement proceeding' is separate to an existing Finma probe into losses linked to the Signa real estate empire, in which Baer was forced to write off US$700 million in loans.
The bank's new leadership team of chief executive officer Stefan Bollinger and chairman Noel Quinn are attempting to move the firm beyond that damaging scandal and position it for growth. Julius Baer is cutting jobs and has told investors that there is no share buyback programme planned for this year.
The Financial Times reported the money-laundering proceeding earlier. Finma declined to comment on the matter. The regulator can confiscate profits it deems to have been obtained through illegal businesses, but it cannot hand down punitive fines. BLOOMBERG
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