Regional Court upholds ruling on more than EUR 2.4 million arrested at ABLV Bank

RIGA - The Riga Regional Court has upheld the decision of the Economic Affairs Court (ELT) on more than EUR 2.4 million recognized as laundered in a private account at ABLV Bank, LETA learned from the prosecution office.

In summer, ELT ruled that money arrested in a criminal case has been laundered and decided to confiscate this money and transfer it into the Latvian state budget.

The decision was appealed at the Riga Regional Court. In late September, the Riga Regional Court upheld the decision. The Riga Regional Court's decision is final.

As reported, the Finance and Capital Market Commission, acting on the instructions from the European Central Bank, ordered ABLV Bank to stop all payments as of February 19, 2018 following a report by the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) of the U.S. Department of the Treasury about ABLV Bank's involvement in international money laundering schemes and corruption. On February 24, 2018 the Finance and Capital Market Commission found an occurrence of unavailability of deposits at ABLV Bank.

Shareholders of ABLV Bank decided in February 2018 to start the liquidation process in order to protect interests of its clients and creditors. ABLV Bank believes that in this way it will be possible to ensure active protection of its customers, the bank said in a statement.

At the end of September 2017, ABLV Bank was the third largest bank in Latvia by assets. The bank's majority shareholders Olegs Fils, Ernests Bernis and Nika Berne own, directly and indirectly, 87.03 percent of the bank's share capital.