Zurich High Court opens judgment in Gazprombank case
Published: Tuesday, Jun 25th 2024, 04:40
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The Zurich High Court will announce the verdicts against four employees of Gazprombank Switzerland today, Tuesday. The public prosecutor's office accuses them of breaching due diligence obligations. They are alleged to have managed accounts for a confidant of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The defendants are accused of holding accounts for Sergey Roldugin at Gazprombank Switzerland (GPBS) from 2014 to 2016. This is despite the fact that, according to the public prosecutor's office, it was obvious that Roldugin was not the true beneficial owner.
"Putins Cellist"
Instead, he is said to have been merely a front man for the unknown actual owner of the funds. "Putin's cellist", as Roldugin is also referred to in media reports, is considered a close friend of Vladimir Putin. In some cases, large sums in the millions flowed through his accounts at the GPBS.
The trial, which took place at the end of May, was attended by the head of the bank, two other members of management and a client advisor. They are three Russian citizens who have been living in Switzerland for some time and a Swiss citizen.
Public prosecutor demands conditional fines
The public prosecutor's office demanded that all four be found guilty of negligence in financial transactions. They are to be punished with conditional fines of varying amounts.
The defense lawyers of the four defendants demanded acquittals. It was anything but proven that Roldugin was not the beneficial owner of the money. He was not only very successful as a conductor and cellist, but also as an investor.
Just over a year ago, the District Court of Zurich found the four former employees of Gazprombank Switzerland guilty of negligence in financial transactions and sentenced them to suspended fines.
GPBS ceased its business activities in the fall of 2022 and is currently in liquidation. The bank came under scrutiny by the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority Finma following the publication of the "Panama Papers" in 2016. It found serious deficiencies in the prevention of money laundering.
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