Credit Suisse already has a lot of problems. Bernhard Odehnal is a reporter with the investigative team at the Swiss media group Tamedia. He spoke to Radio Free Europe’s Georgian Service in an interview.
What is your opinion on the whole Ivanishvili-Credit Suisse affair? Why has it become so controversial, and what do you think about it?
Your word is controversial. I’m surprised that you find this to be controversial, because from a Swiss perspective, there’s no controversy at all, based on the media coverage. The last time this issue was covered in depth was in March or April, when the Bermuda verdict came out. The media reported that Credit Suisse had to pay 550 millions. After that, the issue was barely covered because of the war and everyone’s attention was elsewhere. Then there was the story of Vitaly Malkin, a Russian oligarch who is also suing Credit Suisse. But that’s all. Sorry, but from the Swiss perspective I don’t think there is a controversy.
Some people are not happy that the last major coverage was in April. MKD, a law firm representing Ivanishvili, claims the Swiss media ignores their press releases which highlight Credit Suisse’s gross violations.
I don’t believe that Swiss media, or at least those with whom I work, receive press release from Georgia. They don’t need to because Ivanishvili, and his group, are working with Thomas Borer, a well-known Swiss lobbyist who was the former Swiss Ambassador in Germany. I am sure he would have given them (the Swiss media) information. I am also certain that we did not ignore the information in our reporting.
It is interesting to note that the press release about which they complain about the lack coverage is only available in Georgian on their official website.
“Well, there could be some minor difficulties for Swiss journalists here. As I said, the Swiss hired a lobbyist and I can only assume that they invested a large amount of money in Switzerland. I’m certain that Mr. Borer provided this information and it would have been included in reporting. I don’t get the complaints because there was a lot of reporting on the case. You can check all articles in a Swiss databank, so the claim that Swiss Media ignores the case is absurd.”
According to the former PM’s side of the story, Credit Suisse sent a letter stating that they were withholding payment due to the complex situation in the area, referring to the recent (non-binding resolution) of the European Parliament, which called on the European Council consider sanctioning Ivanishvili for being an oligarch. Reporter in the investigative unit of the Swiss media group Tamedia. We asked our respondent if this was a common practice.
“I’m not a Credit Suisse representative and I haven’t seen that letter anywhere, so I can’t tell if such a claim was made,” he says. “In general, i can only say that Swiss Banks have a problem with sanctions now because they were accused by some of bypassing them. The Swiss government follows the EU rules for sanctions against Ukraine, so banks must also follow them. They’re facing accusations that they tried, knowingly or not, to bypass these sanctions. It’s a very big problem for them and I can see why they are being so careful. In this case, I don’t really know if the argument was made up by Georgia or Credit Suisse. I can only say that it’s a sensitive matter. I can understand why the banks say that we need to be cautious. We will wait and see if sanctions are introduced by the Europeans against a particular person. If sanctions are introduced and you send money to this person, you could be in much worse trouble.
The Georgian side claims that this is happening due to “political press” and an “attempt to get Georgia involved in war in Ukraine”, by threatening either to sanction Ivanishvili, or withhold his assets. What is your opinion on this claim?
Political pressure would be when politicians in Switzerland put pressure on the bank to not fulfill its obligations, and to drag Georgia into the conflict in Ukraine. Or maybe not even Swiss politicians but people in Europe? This is even more absurd. Someone in Europe is trying to pressure Swiss politicians to get them to pressure the Swiss Bank to “draw Georgia into Ukraine war?” It sounds absurder and absurder each time I say this. Credit Suisse already has a lot of problems. It would be dangerous for politicians to interfere in the bank affairs at Credit Suisse, and I am pretty sure that they will not. Thomas Borer is a lobbyist who has a history. He worked for the Kazakh Government and tried to influence Bern politicians to work in their interests. This caused a scandal. I doubt that any Swiss politician today would be tempted to work with him.
The ruling Georgian Dream party claims that this precedent undermines the trust in the Swiss Banking System. How “waterproof” can you make such a claim as a Swiss journalist?
Swiss banks faced huge problems around 10 years ago. This was especially true in the US where they were accused of helping their customers to evade taxes. They were even forced into releasing the bank details of their customers. This is normally a no-no. This is a sacred thing. But that was ten years ago. Since then, regulations have become more strict and the banks themselves have worked on improving their internal control systems. It’s only a reputational issue for Credit Suisse. They lost a lot of money because they invested in the wrong hedge funds and investment funds that went bankrupt. Now they are accused of helping the Bulgarian mafia launder drug money. Ivanishvili’s problems are not the only ones. It’s still a Credit Suisse-specific problem. I wouldn’t say that this problem affects the entire Swiss banking industry. We have more issues with the lawyers and trustees who are not in control. In the Pandora papers we learned that hundreds of Swiss lawyers, trustees and other professionals helped oligarchs hide money all over the globe. This is not a problem of the banks. This is a different problem.
What will happen if the EU or US sanction the ex-PM?
It’s a hard question to answer. I think the court will decide. If you are sanctioned it is because of the pressure his party exerts on the media in Georgia. It begs the question: How does this affect a case that is old? I don’t think the court can decide this. Ivanishvili’s case will remain with Credit Suisse for some time to come.
Interview by Vazha Tavberidze
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