Investigations launched: Suspicion of money laundering against Benkos Signa

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The Munich prosecutor’s office has confirmed investigations into suspected money laundering at Austrian entrepreneur René Benko’s bankrupt Signa Group. A spokesman for the investigating agency said this upon request on Wednesday, without naming one or more of the defendants. However, he pointed out that there is no corporate criminal law in Germany; This means that investigations cannot be carried out against companies, only individuals.

“Of course, the facts will be thoroughly examined from a legal perspective, including possible other crimes,” investigators said in a statement. said. “Bild am Sonntag” made the first news about the process over the weekend.

Until a few months ago, Benko was considered a multi-billionaire; US magazine “Forbes” estimated the fortune of the 46-year-old actor at 6 billion dollars (5.5 billion euros) at the beginning of 2023. However, since the end of December, some companies belonging to Benko’s Signa Group have filed for bankruptcy. Benko’s complex corporate empire includes, among others, the Elbtower project in Hamburg, the luxury department store KaDeWe in Berlin, as well as the department store chain Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof, which went bankrupt. In Switzerland, the group owns, among other things, half of the luxury department store Globus.

Benko also filed for personal bankruptcy

Benko himself filed for bankruptcy in Innsbruck, the capital of Tyrol. This includes, among other things, a subsidy announced by Benko for the bankrupt holding company of Signa Group, which has not yet been fully paid.

The Munich investigations have not yet made much progress. However, the announcement revealed that other prosecutors’ offices in Germany were also involved in the case. It is now becoming clear where the leadership should be. “The exact local responsibilities and therefore press sovereignty in Germany still need to be clarified, so we need to be careful about providing information at this time,” said a spokesman for the Munich prosecutor’s office.

Signa Group has expanded significantly during the low interest rate period of the last few years. However, with the simultaneous increase in loan interest and construction costs, the group could no longer pay its debts. Benko himself has not commented publicly on the decline of his empire in recent months. (AWP/rule)

Source :Blick