Wirecard executives ordered to pay €140 million in damages

Admin I Friday, Sept. 06, 2024

 

MUNICH – A German court has ordered three former executives of the now-defunct payments processing firm Wirecard to pay a total of €140 million ($155 million) in damages plus interest.

The presiding judge at the Munich Regional Court said on Thursday the three acted negligently when granting a loan and issuing bonds, making them liable for the damages incurred.

The ruling does not impact on the main criminal trial against the former Wirecard bosses.

The judgement, which can still be appealed, concerns former chief executive Markus Braun as well as the finance chief and head of product development.

Wirecard’s insolvency administrator Michael Jaffé has filed several lawsuits, including this one, as he tries to repay the insolvent company’s creditors.

Judge Helmut Krenek said that the three executives must pay the damages because the loan had not been collateralized and there had been no thorough financial review before the bonds were issued.

Wirecard, a once high-flying German tech company, spectacularly collapsed in the summer of 2020 after €1.9 billion allegedly held in South East Asian escrow accounts could not be traced, resulting in hundreds of civil lawsuits in addition to criminal proceedings.