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FRAUD

UBS pays $545 million over FX and rate fraud

UBS, Switzerland's largest bank, says that it will plead guilty to fraud in the US for manipulating benchmark interest rates and pay $545 million in fines and penalties.

UBS pays $545 million over FX and rate fraud
Photo: Martin Abegglen

A 2012 agreement between the bank and US authorities to drop charges over the so-called Libor scandal had been overturned by officials, the bank said in a statement issued on Wednesday.

UBS said it had agreed to plead guilty to one count of fraud in connection with manipulation of the Libor rate, pay a $203 million fine and accept a three-year term of probation.

UBS was fined 1.4 billion francs ($1.49 billion) in 2012 by Swiss authorities for its part in manipulating the benchmark rate.

The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and the Connecticut Department of Banking also jointly issued a finding that UBS engaged in “unsafe and unsound business practices” relating to its foreign exchange business.

UBS said it had not been criminally charged with regard to its FX operations but it is to pay the Fed a penalty of $342 million and has agreed to “undertake a series of remedial measures”.

“The conduct of a small group of employees was unacceptable and we have taken appropriate disciplinary actions,” UBS Chairman Axel Weber and CEO Sergio Ermotti said in a joint statement.

They said that UBS “self-detected this matter” and reported it to the US Department of Justice and other authorities.

“Our actions demonstrate our determination to pursue a policy of zero tolerance for misconduct and a desire to promote the right culture in our industry”.

UBS said it continues to cooperate with ongoing investigations, including investigations of individuals by American authorities.

Despite the significant penalties, UBS said it had already made provisions for the payments and said there would be no financial impact on second quarter 2015 results.

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GERMANY

Germany cracks down on fake Covid vaccine documents

German police have set up a special team to fight a growing number of forged vaccine certificates being sold in the black market

Germany cracks down on fake Covid vaccine documents
People who are fully vaccinated can show their vaccination booklet, which has a stamp and a sticker inside. Photo: Ina FASSBENDER / AFP

Police in Cologne have warned of a group of fraudsters selling fake vaccination certificates, a growing problem the scale of which is still unclear.

The police said the fraudsters worked in encrypted Telegram chats, making investigations difficult, and were selling fake documents with all the stamps and signatures, including a mark about vaccination with BioNTech or AstraZeneca.

READ ALSO: Germany probes Covid-19 testing centres for fraud

The fraud involved both real traffic in fake documents as well as scams luring customers into paying €100.

People in Germany who are fully vaccinated can show their vaccination booklet, which has a stamp and a sticker inside. Those who don’t have a booklet get a piece of paper.

Covid health passes are currently being rolled out across the EU, with a European health passport expected to be available from mid-June.

READ ALSO: What’s the latest on how the EU’s ‘Covid passports’ will work for travellers?

Over 44% of the adult population in Germany has received at least one dose of the Covid-19 vaccine, and more than 18% of Germans have been fully vaccinated.

German police have said forged coronavirus vaccine documents are becoming an increasing problem.

Last month, a couple in Baden-Württemberg was accused of selling fake coronavirus vaccination certificates.

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