Germany’s largest Bank Deutsche Bank, broke off relations with two leading banks in Cyprus — Hellenic Bank and the Cyprus “daughter” VTB, Russian Commercial Bank (RCB Bank), through which, according to the documentary “the Panama document”, issued unsecured loans to cellist Sergei Roldugin, a friend of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
According to the newspaper the Times (translation Inopressa), in March Deutsche Bank has notified the Hellenic Bank and the RCB Bank, will cease to conduct, through its payment system denominated transactions. Journalists have found out, Western financial group “cut off” high-risk customers in order to withstand the more stringent review by regulators.
The newspaper reminds that Deutsche Bank itself was at the center of several recent scandals, including those accused of assistance to Russian clients with money laundering.
For its part, Michael Maratheftis, head of RCB Bank communication and public relations, said: “We treat the decision of Deutsche Bank with full respect and thank them for their cooperation and continue to maintain excellent relations with all our correspondent banks”.
According to International consortium of investigative journalists, “the Panama documents show that seems to VTB was given through RCB Bank loans to cellist Sergei Roldugin, a close friend of President Putin” (the wording of the newspaper). VTB denies these allegations, as RCB said Roldugin “was never our client in any personal relationship or as a beneficiary of any company that has an account in our Bank, and all proposed transactions that are associated with RCB, took place three years before the imposition on Russia of any sanctions”.
Information from “the Panama document” relating to the sanctioned people around Putin, intends to consider the Ministry of the Treasury: the Department has promised to investigate possible illegal actions and activities to circumvent sanctions.
Vladimir Putin, commenting on “the Panama document”, said that “almost all money” earned by Roldugin, “he spent on the purchase of musical instruments abroad, and brought them back to Russia.”
