Several banks are being investigated by US regulators over their dealings with Russian clients, according to reports.
The US Department of Justice (DOJ) is investigating allegations that individuals working at UBS and Credit Suisse helped Russian oligarchs to evade US financial sanctions. The subpoenas are understood to have been sent before the UBS takeover of Credit Suisse.
The regulator has also reportedly sent subpoenas to several employees at a number of US-based banks in relation to the probe.
According to Bloomberg, the DOJ is trying to identify which employees were responsible for vetting certain sanctioned clients and whether they were dealt with appropriately. The employees may then be investigated further to determine if any illegal activity took place.
Credit Suisse may be investigated in Switzerland for management failures
In other news, Credit Suisse also faces a potential investigation and disciplinary action from Swiss regulators for how senior management steered the bank towards its collapse earlier this month, resulting in an “emergency” takeover by UBS.
Finma President Marlene Amstad told a Swiss newspaper: “CS [Credit Suisse] had a cultural problem that translated into a lack of accountability…Often it was not clear who was responsible for what. This favoured a negligent handling of risks.” She added that Finma is “not a law enforcement agency,” but is “exploring options” around taking action against the bank.
