By Louis Goss
Credit Suisse has agreed to pay France €238m (£208m) to settle a tax fraud and money laundering probe brought against it by the country’s economic crime agency.
The embattled financier said in a statement it had reached a settlement with France’s Parquet National Financier (PNF) financial crime unit to resolve a “legacy matter” relating to its cross-border private-banking services.
The payment settles an investigation brought forward by French authorities in 2016, over claims the Swiss bank facilitated money laundering and tax evasion, the PNF said.
Credit Suisse noted the settlement agreement does not comprise any recognition of guilt, but instead said the deal marks “another step” in the bank’s “proactive” approach to resolving “legacy issues”.
The bank has taken a more active approach towards dealing with its legal trouble under new legal chief, Markus Diethelm, who joined the firm in July.
This month, Credit Suisse agreed to pay $495m (£438m) to US authorities to settle cases linked to its residential mortgage-backed securities business in the run up to 2008.
In June, the bank was convicted of failing to prevent money laundering by a Bulgarian cocaine trafficking gang.
The €238m sum includes a €123m “public interest fine” – made up of a profit disgorgement of €65.6m and an additional fine of €57.4m – plus €115m in damages to the French state.
Credit Suisse declined to comment further.
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