J. Safra Sarasin Fined Over Corruption Scandal
Switzerland’s Office of the Attorney General has ordered Bank J. Safra Sarasin to pay a fine of 3.5 million francs in connection with money laundering tied to the Petrobras corruption case.
Prosecutors said the bank failed to take all necessary and reasonable organizational measures to prevent, or at least attempt to prevent, aggravated money laundering involving $71 million between November 2011 and May 2014.
In a related ruling, a former employee of the bank received a six-month suspended prison sentence for aggravated money laundering. The offences, totaling $29.2 million, were committed between November 2011 and July 2014, when she was working at another Swiss financial institution.
Brazilian corruption scandal
Both convictions are linked to the corruption affair surrounding Brazil’s state-owned oil company Petrobras, known as Lava Jato.
In setting the penalty, prosecutors said they took into account the time elapsed since the offences and the corrective measures the bank has since implemented, including organizational reforms.
Because J. Safra Sarasin paid 16 million francs to Petrobras in a settlement, prosecutors decided against imposing an additional compensation order. Both parties waived the right to appeal, making the penalties legally binding.
Bank’s response
In a statement, the bank said the Attorney General’s order concerned events that took place more than ten years ago. The case also involved other financial institutions and is now closed, it added. The penalty does not constitute an admission of guilt or recognition of civil or criminal liability by the bank or its representatives.
