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Demonstrators carry Lebanese flags and a banner depicting Lebanon's central bank governor, Riad Salameh, as they head towards the central bank building during an anti-government protest in the southern city of Tyre, Lebanon. Photo: Aziz Taher/Reuters.
Twelve Swiss banks are being investigated by federal authorities for holding funds embezzled by Lebanon’s Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh
A significant portion of millions in public funds embezzled by Lebanonās Central Bank governorĀ Riad SalamehĀ is being held in several bank accounts in Switzerland.
āTwelve Swiss banks have received a large part of the money [Salameh] is alleged to have embezzled, estimated at up to $500 million,ā Swiss dailyĀ SonntagsZeitungĀ reportedĀ on 26 February.
The report adds that $250 million is being held in an HSBC subsidiary in the Swiss city of Geneva. Other amounts are with UBS, Credit Suisse, Julius Baer, EFG, and Pictet.
The transactions were ācarried out using an offshore company registered in the British Virgin Islands,ā theĀ SonntagsZeitungĀ report adds.
The offshore company in question is likely Forry Associates, a company owned by the brother of Lebanonās central bank chief, Raja Salameh.
In February of last year,Ā ReutersĀ released a report revealing that Forry AssociatesĀ concealedĀ information regarding the recipients of commissions that were charged to commercial banks when they bought government securities.
Salameh and his associates then used these āconsiderable sumsā of public funds to purchase real estate assets in several European countries.
In March last year, Salameh wasĀ chargedĀ with illicit enrichment by Lebanese Judge Ghada Aoun in relation to an apartment in Paris that the Central Bank leased as a āreserve centerā in the event that the bank would no longer be able to operate from its headquarters in Beirut.
A raid on the apartment by French police in 2021 revealed that the Central Bank had rented it for $500,000 a year.
The Salameh brothers are also accused of using the money of Lebanese citizens to pay exorbitant rent for luxury apartments owned by the central bank chief and his close relatives in Paris, and to secure monthly stipends of 30,000 euros for Salamehās girlfriend and daughter.
āSome of the funds have already been frozen, but federal prosecutors have not revealed how much,āĀ SonntagsZeitungĀ revealed.
According to the report, Switzerlandās federal market regulator FINMA has been undergoing preliminary investigations into the 12 Swiss banks āfor months.ā Legal action has also been taken against ātwo banks āin the Lebanese context,āā a spokesman said without elaborating further.
The Swiss report comes just a few days after Salameh, his brother Raja, and his assistant Marianne Hoayek wereĀ slappedĀ with new corruption charges by a Lebanese court.
The charges come in the wake of a European judicial investigation launched in 2020 concerning his embezzlement of the funds.
In January, European investigators arrived in the country to continue the investigation. The team has since left but will return to Lebanon in early March to move forward with the probe, judicial sources have revealed.
As the shadow of this investigation looms over Salameh, the US-backed Central Bank chief has revealed that he isĀ not seekingĀ a new term after his current term ends later this year.
(The Cradle)
