Kacs was commenting on his research on the connections between the current management of the Anti-Corruption Fund created by Alexei Navalny and the shareholders of Probiznesbank.
When asked how the Russian bankers perceived the Latvian banking system at the time when the events surrounding "Probiznesbank" unfolded, Kacs answered that "it was the main laundering platform for stolen Russian money" in the period 2010-2014.
LSM reported on the scheme repeatedly at the time.
According to Katz, Russian and British brokers gave loans to offshore companies controlled by the bank's owners and took Probiznesbank money in return.
Katz explained that Latvian banks were only a small peripheral part of a much wider scheme involving multiple jurisdictions.
"It was simply the first stage of money laundering. Well, partly the second. Therefore, all offshore companies had open accounts in Latvian banks, they transferred money to each other, issued loans to create the appearance of economic activity... By the way, they sometimes threw money in the opposite direction. It wasn't like all the money was going in one direction. It was a layering stage in the money laundering process, it's meant to make what's happening unclear to everyone," said Katz.
Latvia's previous reputation for money laundering Russian and Belarusian money via its banks came to a head in 2018 when the United States blacklisted Lavia's ABLV bank. A belated but concerted crackdown by regulators and politicians resulted in Latvia eventually managing to turn around the dubious reputation of its banking sector – which was recently recognized by the United States, too.
You can watch the entire interview (in Russian) here:
