BNP and other banks are investigated for alleged fraud – 03/28/2023 – Market

French authorities raided five major banks investigated for suspected tax fraud and money laundering.

According to the National Finance Prosecutor’s Office (PNF), the operations were carried out in Paris and in the financial district of La Defense, mobilized around 150 inspectors and 16 magistrates, and required several months of preparation.

The body in charge of investigating financial crimes explained that the searches took place after the opening of five preliminary investigations, in December 2021, on suspicion of money laundering and tax fraud related to the payment of dividends.

Prosecutors from Germany also participated in the action, as the country has registered similar cases in recent years.

A spokesman for the French bank Société Générale confirmed to the AFP agency that the institution was the target of an operation, but said he did not know the reason.

According to the French newspaper Le Monde, the headquarters of BNP Paribas, Exane, the financial group Natixis and the British giant HSBC were also targets of the operation.

A 2018 journalistic investigation, entitled “CumEx Files”, carried out by several European media outlets, revealed several cases of tax fraud.

The title “CumEx Files” refers to the list of stocks with (“cum” in Latin) and without (“ex”) dividends.

In 2021, the investigation revealed that the fraud totaled around 140 billion euros (about R$ 790 billion) over a period of 20 years.

“The fraud consists of a foreign shareholder of a company listed in France temporarily transferring the shares owned by him to a French bank, close to the dividend payment date”, explained the prosecution.

The objective is to avoid the tax applicable to the payment of this dividend, the authorities specified.