Berg – Financial Treason & Crime

Jesper Berg, 24 May 2021

Good luck finding a major bank in Europe that hasn’t breached money laundering regulations.

In Denmark, the two largest banks, Danske Bank and Nordea, are both currently subject to criminal investigations. BNP Paribas received the highest-ever fine in 2014, when it settled with U.S. authorities and had to pay $9 billion for sanctions violations. Many others — from HSBC and Standard Chartered in the U.K. to Deutsche Bank and UBS and Credit Suisse — have had to answer for offenses.

These cases show that living up to money laundering regulations is difficult, but not doing so is one of the biggest risks to a bank’s reputation. Banks and authorities share the same goal — to stop the bad guys — but both are struggling to find a way forward. While the European Union has proposed establishing a dedicated authority on the crime, company expenses to combat laundering are ballooning. Continue reading “Article: How to Combat Money Laundering in Europe”

05/07/202105/08/2021

Article: Danske Bank Watchdog Calls for EU Debate on Client Secrecy Rules

Article - Media, Publications

Danske Bank Watchdog Calls for EU Debate on Client Secrecy Rules

Frances Schwartzkopff, 07 May 2021

The financial watchdog overseeing Danske Bank A/S says the European Union needs to re-examine the limits of client privacy if it’s serious about fighting money laundering and other forms of financial crime.

Jesper Berg, the director general of the Financial Supervisory Authority in Copenhagen, says Europe must acknowledge that the current bias toward bank secrecy means “substantially more resources” are being spent on trying to catch illicit transactions. It also adds to the risk that there’ll be “some money laundering we won’t get at.” Continue reading “Article: Danske Bank Watchdog Calls for EU Debate on Client Secrecy Rules”

04/05/202104/17/2021

Article: Electric Car Co.’s $2.4B Deal Was Built On Lies, Investor Says

Article - Media, Publications

Electric Car Co.’s $2.4B Deal Was Built On Lies, Investor Says

Lauren Berg, 05 April 2021

In the midst of its $2.4 billion merger with blank-check company Hennessy Capital, electric car maker Canoo waited until after the market closed to tell investors it was changing its business focus, causing its stock to plummet, according to a proposed class action filed Friday in California federal court.

In December, Los Angeles-based Canoo Holdings Ltd. went public in a merger with Hennessy Capital Acquisition Corp., but didn’t tell investors it was turning its focus away from the plan to sell vehicles through a subscription model and that it was de-emphasizing its engineering services business, according to the complaint filed by investor Justin Kojak. Continue reading “Article: Electric Car Co.’s $2.4B Deal Was Built On Lies, Investor Says”