Deutsche Bank headquarters got raided this week as another bank that regularly criticizes Bitcoin is again suspected of money laundering.
Deutsche Bank Haunted by Panama Papers
As Bloomberg reported November 29, an investigation into two employees at the lender has even resulted in its Frankfurt headquarters being searched, with shares falling almost 5 percent.
Deutsche Bank (DB), which the publication notes has spent $18 billion on “fines and legal disputes” over the past ten years, reportedly has multiple links to the Panama Papers scandal.
Citing prosecutors, Bloomberg added Deutsche “may have helped clients in setting up offshore companies in tax havens.”
“Money obtained illegally may have been transferred to accounts at Deutsche Bank, which failed to report the suspicions that the accounts may have been used to launder money,” it reported.
Bitter Irony Of Banks’ Bitcoin FUD
Ironically, in April, Philippe Vollot, global head of the DB’s department against financial crime, called for greater regulations due to cryptocurrencies’ purported attractiveness for criminals. He said:
Governments and regulators should thoroughly look into this to ensure that cryptocurrencies have the same financial crime protection rules as traditional payment solutions.
In February, Bitcoinist reported, one analyst produced a dedicated report seeking to dispell “myths” associated with the industry, concluding it was “too early” to conclude anything about it.
Prior to that, other bank sources had delivered more dismissive comments, chief strategist Ulrich Stephan in November last year saying he “would simply not recommend (Bitcoin) to the everyday investor.”
While Bloomberg notes that only the UK’s Royal Bank of Scotland has paid out more in legal settlements than Deutsche Bank since 2008, various European institutions have sought to ‘bash’ Bitcoin at the same time as being found guilty of financial crimes.
Among recent cases were the Netherlands’ Rabobank and Denmark’s Danske Bank, the latter infamously laundering more funds than cryptocurrency’s entire market cap.
In a prior report into the industry, Danske had managed to underscore the irony of its position.
“…Most importantly, the lack of transparency and regulatory control have made cryptocurrencies a target for criminal purposes and we know that they on several occasions have been involved in criminal transactions like money laundering or extortion,” it reads.
This week meanwhile saw Frankfurt host Germany’s second Bitcoin ATM.
What do you think about Deutsche Bank’s new scandal? Let us know in the comments below!
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