The National Anticorruption Center announced that four employees with decision-making power, from Moldova’s National Bank, are under criminal investigation. The four employees are suspected of abuse of office after they allegedly tried to help a group of shareholders of a bank in Moldova to take control of the bank, causing particularly large damages to other shareholders. In a press release, the National Bank stated that such actions reduce the institution’s ability to ensure the supervision, transparency, and stability of the banking sector, blocking the staff of the central bank from carrying out its duties properly.

On July 16, the National Anticorruption Center and the anti-corruption prosecutors ran criminal investigations against four employees of the National Bank of Moldova, gathering the materials in the present criminal case. 

According to the ordinance issued by the National Anticorruption Center, during 2018-2019, state employees and high-ranking officials within the National Bank of Moldova worked in favor of a group of shareholders of the Finance and Commerce Bank. 

The National Anticorruption Center mentions that the National bank employees wanted to take over the Finance and Commerce Bank. In doing so, they ignored known information, and misinterpreting factual and legal situations, prepared papers with distorted information. Based on the distorted information, the Executive Committee of the National Bank of Moldova issued a decision through which the rights of some shareholders were suspended and the shareholders were obliged to alienate some shares in three months. According to the same decision, the shareholders would’ve acted in concentrated ownership.

The decision mentioned above infringed on the property rights of several shareholders who owned together 35.15 percent of the Finance and Commerce Bank shares. 

According to the National Anticorruption Center, the forced alienation of the shares, at a smaller price compared to the market price, could’ve led to large-scale damages worth over €6.32 million (123 million lei). 

The National Anticorruption Center stated that the materials accumulated suggest that state employees and high-ranking officials abused the office while acting in the interest of the third party persons, infringing the rights and interests protected by Moldova’s law.  

The officials are released under investigation. They are considered innocent until a final and irrevocable decision of the court. 

The Anticorruption Prosecutor’s Office conducts the criminal investigation.

In a press release, the National Bank of Moldova expresses concern about the National Anticorruption Center investigation and searches against the four bank employees with decision making power. The National Bank stated that such actions reduce the institution’s ability to ensure the supervision, transparency, and stability of the banking sector, blocking the staff of the central bank from carrying out its duties properly.