How the secret abuse of power in Andorra brought down an international bank
An unlawful smear campaign coordinated by Andorran authorities led to the expropriation of Private Bank of Andorra (BPA), on the basis of misleading evidence. As a result, hundreds of millions of dollars were unjustly lost by investors.
This website sheds light on the wrongdoings and abuse of power by the Andorran, Spanish and US authorities against BPA.
Case Summary
In March 2015, the Andorran Government, backed by their Spanish counterparts, expropriated a private bank and its subsidiaries as an immediate response to unsubstantiated allegations made by the US Treasury Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). Subsequent developments have shown that the authorities involved were pursuing their own political agenda: the US’s crackdown on international money laundering; Spain’s fight against Catalan independence sentiment; Andorra’s attempts to shield the country’s elites from anti-corruption scrutiny.
Despite numerous allegations and the forced closure of the bank by the Andorran authorities, there have been no convictions of money laundering in relation to BPA. FinCEN have withdrawn their allegations and BPA and its directors have been cleared of any wrongdoing by Spanish courts, while Andorra still refuses to recognize their responsibilities.
BPA’s expropriation and the reckless and negligent actions of Andorran financial authorities caused millions of dollars in losses, causing financial misery for thousands of customers and investors.
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