Banks Safra Sarasin sentenced for inadequate money laundering controls
Bank J. Safra Sarasin has been sentenced by the Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland for inadequate money laundering controls. It must pay a fine of CHF 3.5 million.
22.08.2025, 15:12
SDA
According to the authorities, the bank had taken inadequate organizational measures between 2011 and 2014 to prevent money laundering amounting to around USD 71 million.
The conviction is in connection with the Brazilian "Lava Jato" corruption affair surrounding the oil company Petrobras, as the Office of the Attorney General announced on Friday. As the bank had already paid 16 million francs to Petrobras as part of a settlement, the authorities waived an additional claim for compensation.
A former asset manager of the bank was also sentenced. She received a conditional prison sentence of six months for qualified money laundering.
According to the Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland, her actions involved transactions totaling 29.2 million dollars and spanned more than three years, in some cases even after she had moved to another Swiss bank.
Corrupt payments to Petrobras bosses
According to the Office of the Attorney General, the investigations revealed that the former employee looked after clients who were involved in corrupt payments to Petrobras executives. The bank was used to transfer money from construction companies and oil companies in order to gain advantages in the awarding of contracts.
In total, the inadequate organization of the bank had enabled money transfers of 42.5 million dollars, plus a further 28.5 million dollars in payments that were rejected by recipient banks. These failures had impaired the integrity of the Swiss financial center, the Office of the Attorney General stated.
"Considerably more difficult" investigations
However, the authorities discontinued a parallel investigation into the bribery of foreign public officials. Neither the bank nor the ex-employee could be proven to have been deliberately involved in the execution of the corrupt payments. A third defendant, an employee of the bank, was also exonerated.
The Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland stated that the investigation had been "considerably complicated" by lengthy unsealing proceedings before the competent compulsory measures court. It was not until the end of 2024, more than five years after a house search, that the investigators gained access to important email inboxes. With the penalty orders and discontinuation orders that have now been issued, the proceedings have been concluded. All parties have waived their right to appeal.
Bank J. Safra Sarasin stated in a statement that the penalty order does not constitute an admission of guilt. Neither the bank nor its representatives accept any civil or criminal liability. At the same time, the bank referred to corrective measures that have already been implemented, including at an organizational level.
