Danske Bank’s branch in Tallinn, Estonia, was the center of the massive money laundering for years. Photo: Valda Kalnina/EPA, via Shutterstock
Six former employees of the Estonian branch intentionally concealed the real owners of funds of suspected criminal origin, which were transferred into accounts at Danske during 2007-2015, state prosecutor Maria Entsik said.
Prosecutors seized ten million euros worth of property, which they said the six had earned for providing money laundering services, Entsik's office said in a statement.
According to the data collected in the pre-trial proceedings, the defendants provided money laundering services in the amount of at least 1.6 billion US dollars and six million euros.
Their services included advising clients on how to hide an electronic trail of bank transfers, helping them to prepare documents, and selling them companies to help hide the real owners of funds, according to the prosecutor.
"It was professional money laundering" said Entsik.
Danske Bank pleaded guilty to bank fraud conspiracy in December, forfeiting $2 billion as part of an agreement with the United States and Denmark.