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French prosecutors have searched the offices of several major banks in France, including Societe Generale, BNP Paribas and HSBC, on suspicion of money laundering and financial fraud, a spokesman for the prosecutor's office said, quoted by Reuters.
Societe Generale confirmed the raids, while representatives of the other two banks were not available for comment.
The spokesperson of the prosecutor's office confirmed the earlier information of Mond, according to which the inspections were related to the so-called vicious practice of "dividend removal" and also affected the investment banks "Exane" and "Natixis" ), notes BTA.
Civil servants in France with a ban on games and applications
Prosecutors said five investigations were underway into so-called "kum-kum" practices, enabling wealthy clients to avoid paying taxes on dividends through complex legal balancing acts.
15 investigative judges and 150 agents are involved in the operation.
France
banks
money laundering
searches
financial fraud