Wirecard boss denies charges in massive fraud trial | – #Wirecard #boss #denies #charges #massive #fraud #trial
MUNICH, Feb 13 (Reuters) – The former boss of Wirecard on Monday expressed “deep regret” over the collapse of the defunct payments company but denied all charges as he took the stand at Germany’s biggest post-war fraud trial.
Dressed in his trademark black turtleneck and rimless glasses, one-time chief executive Marcus Brown said he knew of no fraud or embezzlement and believed he was running a legitimate and sound business.
Austrian-born Braun, 53, and two other former Wirecard executives, Oliver Bellenhaus and Stephan von Erffa, are on trial on charges including market manipulation and fraud and face up to 15 years each if convicted. imprisonment is waiting.
Brown 2020He has been in jail since the collapse of Wirecard in 2011, which shook Germany’s business landscape, bringing politicians who backed it and regulators who took years to investigate allegations against the firm under intense scrutiny.
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“I had no knowledge of fraud or embezzlement,” Brown told the Munich court on Wirecard’s balance of 1.9 billion euro (2 billion dollars) described the discovery of a value gap as a “painful day” for shareholders and employees.
Bellenhaus, who became a key witness last year after surrendering to power in the trial’s opening exchanges, described Brown as an “absolute CEO” and called the kickbacks at the center of a massive fraud.
Brown, who spoke briefly earlier in court to confirm his personal details, disputed that characterization, saying he believed there was a proper accounting and audit.
At the start of testimony, which is expected to last several days, Brown recounted his early years at Wirecard, describing a rocky start in which he and other executives pulled all-nighters and worked with a sense of mission.
“There was really no life outside the company,” he said, his voice calm and collected.
At the start of the trial in December, prosecutors accused the defendants of falsifying transactions with partner companies to mislead creditors and investors. way accused of being part of a gang that invented a large amount of imaginary income.
Brown’s attorneys allege that Bellenhaus was the mastermind behind the fraud at Wirecard, which began processing payments for pornography and online gambling and 28 billion dollars claimed that it has become a blue-chip DAX company.
Reporting by Jörn Poltz and Alexander Hübner Writing by Matthias Williams Editing by Mark Potter
Our standards: Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
2023-02-13 15:19:35
Source – reuters
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