A former top manager of Warburg Invest, a subsidiary of the Hamburg MM Warburg Group, is on trial here.
(Photo: Reuters)
Cologne In the criminal proceedings against an investment banker before the Bonn Regional Court, the public prosecutor’s office is demanding a total sentence of seven years in prison. In the concluding pleadings on Thursday, the defense called for a suspended sentence, without naming a specific penalty.
A verdict in the trial before the 14th Major Criminal Court is expected in a few days. The next meeting is scheduled for February 9th.
A former top manager of Warburg Invest, a subsidiary of the Hamburg MM Warburg Group, is on trial. He was responsible for two cum-ex funds in which rich investors could invest their money. According to the indictment, the fund was called BC German Equity in 2009 and BC German Hedge in 2010.
The profits of these funds came from the tax coffers. It was based on share group transactions aimed at having a capital gains tax that had been paid once be reimbursed several times.
Top jobs of the day
Find the best jobs now and
be notified by email.
The public prosecutor sees the accused as an accomplice. She also holds the investment banker guilty in many individual cases.
>> Listen to the podcast: Behind the scenes of Germany’s biggest tax scandal – How Cum-Ex affects all taxpayers to this day
The accusations of the prosecutor differ fundamentally from the view of the defense. The lawyers see their client as an accomplice, and his actions should also be summarized. When assessing the sentence, it will ultimately depend on which view the chamber around the presiding judge Roland Zickler follows.
made a confession
The public prosecutor’s office also took into account in their pleading that the defendant gave up his initial defensiveness during the course of the main hearing and admitted his complicity. A confession generally leads to a reduced sentence.
“I have always talked the processes and events back then,” the 63-year-old admitted in court. The reason was “to justify my actions at the time to myself, to others and also to the judiciary. That was wrong.”
In his testimony, the accused also incriminated the management of the Warburg Bank. He felt pressured, he told the court. “I was afraid that if I refused, I would have ended my career in the Warburg Group.”
The longtime bank boss Christian Olearius is also accused in the Cum-Ex affair, he rejects the allegations. Olearius maintained close contact with tax attorney Hanno Berger. In investigative circles, Berger is considered the “Spiritus Rector” of the cum-ex business and is currently in Swiss extradition custody. Several charges are waiting for him in Germany.
Olearius’ right hand, the general representative S., was already in the dock. He was sentenced to five and a half years in prison. The verdict is not yet legally binding.
More: The number of cum-ex procedures is increasing massively, banks are coming under pressure