The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of the United States of America (USA) announced on Monday (03) that a plan is being drawn up to distribute the fines imposed on Credit Suisse to investors affected by the corruption scandal in Mozambique, known as "hidden debts".

According to a publication on the SWI swissinfo.chThe fund, which totals around 105.5 million dollars, includes money collected from Credit Suisse and the Russian bank VTB Capital, covering interest and civil penalties, stressing that the plan will be established by the end of July 2025.

"Credit Suisse, now owned by UBS, reached an agreement with regulators in the US, UK and Switzerland in October 2021 over the Mozambique debt scandal. As part of it, the bank paid almost 550 million dollars in penalties and forgave 200 million in debts owed by Mozambique," says the portal.

The hidden debts scandal dates back to 2013 and 2014, when former Finance Minister Manuel Chang approved state guarantees on loans from ProInducus, Ematum and MAM to Credit Suisse and VTB banks without Parliament's consent.

The funds were supposedly intended to pay for a tuna fishing fleet, but corrupt officials were paid large-scale bribes, plunging the country into a financial crisis.

(Photo DR)