A Swedish court sentenced former Swedbank CEO Birgitte Bonnesen to 15 months in prison for gross fraud and misleading the public and regulators regarding the bank's involvement in money laundering through its Baltic operations, according to multiple reports. The court found that Bonnesen made misleading comments to the press about the bank's anti-money laundering measures, downplaying the extent of suspicious transactions. The sentencing has drawn attention to the broader money laundering ties that have plagued Swedbank, which saw its shares plunge about 30% since the scandal broke, equivalent to more than $7.5 billion in lost market value, according to Bloomberg.
Swedbank's board fired Bonnesen after an SVT report about shady dealings concerning Swedbank's Baltic accounts, according to Lars Idermark, chairman of the board. SVT reported that a company used a Swedbank account to allegedly conceal bribes to former Ukraine president Viktor Yanukovych. The broadcaster also revealed that Vega Holding made payments to Inlord Sales LLP, a UK-based company mentioned in the Paul Manafort affair. Inlord later paid nearly a million dollars to Paul Manafort, according to multiple reports. Vega donated $100,000 to Project on Transitional Democracies, an NGO run by Bruce P. Jackson who worked with Manafort, as reported by SVT and Vice News. Authorities raided Swedbank's central office in Stockholm as part of an investigation into the bank's operations.
In a separate case, former Lebanese Central Bank governor Riad Salameh was arrested and charged with embezzling at least USD 42 million from the Central Bank, related to illicit commissions between 2015-2018 involving Optimum Invest, according to Lebanese authorities. Salameh is subject to an Interpol red notice and sanctioned by the UK, US, and Canada, according to multiple reports. French authorities issued an arrest warrant for him on corruption charges in 2023.
Hezbollah financier Mohammad Ibrahim Bazzi pleaded guilty to sanctions evasion and money-laundering conspiracy charges for transferring hundreds of thousands of US dollars from the US to Lebanon in violation of sanctions, according to multiple reports. Bazzi has been classified as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist by the US Department of the Treasury since May 2018. He agreed to forfeit approximately USD 830,000 linked to illegal transactions and faces a maximum 20-year prison sentence.
UK businessman Michael Lomas was extradited from the UK to South Africa to face charges of fraud, corruption, and money laundering related to kickbacks to Eskom officials, according to multiple reports. Lomas is accused of helping pay over ZAR 30 million (USD 2.5 million) in kickbacks to secure a ZAR 1.5 billion (USD 85 million) contract for Tubular Construction Projects. He allegedly made payments to entities controlled by former Eskom senior manager France Hlakudi.
In Sweden, a manager is suspected of having tricked or defrauded 15 million kronor, according to multiple reports. The manager accepted bribes of 5 million kronor, and for a year, money that had been deposited into the manager's private account was missing, according to multiple reports. A police report has been filed, and millions of kronor were not correctly booked in the accounts. The identity of the manager has not been disclosed, and the specific evidence linking the manager to the bribes and missing funds remains unclear. The current status of the police investigation is also unknown.
Botswana's Directorate of Intelligence and Security identified indications of potential corruption at Air Botswana, according to the agency.
In the United States, banks reported $688 million in cheque fraud over a six-month period in 2023, according to a FinCEN report. Cryptocurrency-related scams resulted in $5.6 billion of losses in 2023, a 45% increase from the previous year, according to the FBI.
Swedish fintech Klarna faces a potential AML probe from the Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority over its AML measures, according to the authority. The specific AML measures under scrutiny have not been detailed. Separately, the UK prosecuted an individual for operating unregistered cryptocurrency ATMs, marking the first charges for this offense, according to multiple reports.
Canada's financial intelligence unit FINTRAC published a Special Bulletin on money laundering indicators related to extortion directed at Canada's South Asian diaspora. Meanwhile, the US Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated Cambodian Senator Kok An and 28 individuals and entities in his network for operating scam centers that defrauded Americans.
JJB Sports confirmed it received an approach from a potential bidder for the group, according to the board. Sales in the 23 weeks to 4 July were 1.1% lower than in 2003, according to multiple reports. Replica shirt sales increased but other clothing fell by 15%. The outcome of the bidder approach is not yet known.