A prominent Liechtenstein banker is being probed on suspicion of benefiting from insider knowledge in securities dealings. The move led to his abrupt departure at the principality's second-largest lender.
Georg Wohlwend is being investigated for potential insider dealings, Liechtenstein's chief prosecutor Robert Wallner said in an emailed statement to finews.com on Wednesday. Wohlwend stepped down suddenly from Liechtensteinische Landesbank (LLB), which he has presided since 2017, earlier in the day.
Via LLB, Wohlwend denied the allegations, but said he would step down «to avoid any burden on LLB.» The prosecutor said the preliminary investigation was prompted by Liechtenstein's financial regulator, FMA. A spokesman for the FMA didn't comment.
Government Office
An LLB spokesman said the investigation isn't related to the 57-year-old veteran banker's oversight of the bank, «nor is the investigation related to LLB's stock.» Wohlwend was part of top management at VP Bank, another Liechtenstein private bank, until 2012.
He spent three years as a governing minister of the principality before returning to the private sector in 2017, through LLB, which is majority-owned by the state. Wohlwend is also a board member at Neutrik and Seed X, two Liechtenstein firms, as well as chairman of Alegra Capital, which sells structured credit funds.
Rare Insider Cases
The matter is potentially explosive: insider trading investigations are extremely rare in Liechtenstein – and those involving bankers even less so. The same is true of Switzerland, where the case of an unnamed ex-CEO of a Swiss bank was sanctioned by Finma, which led to a criminal investigation, as finews.com reported in April.
Wohlwend is likely to have been blindsided by the probe; just six months ago, he was reelected for a second term at LLB. He couldn't immediately be reached for comment on the investigation.
Samuel Gerber contributed reporting
