HomeNewsBriefArgentina Ex-JP Morgan Executive Describes Money Laundering Scheme
BRIEF

Argentina Ex-JP Morgan Executive Describes Money Laundering Scheme

ARGENTINA / 15 JUL 2013 BY ELYSSA PACHICO EN

A former JP Morgan executive testified on how he helped wealthy Argentine clients evade billions of dollars worth of taxes, in a case that raises questions over the extent to which Argentine financial and banking authorities have turned a blind eye to money laundering.

Hernan Arbizu --  a private banker who has confessed to stealing millions from his clients -- provided eight hours of testimony before an Argentine court on July 11, as newspaper Tiempo Argentino reports.

Arbizu said that he helped Argentine clients move billions of dollars into offshore accounts, in order to evade paying taxes. Among those implicated are accounts belonging to energy company Petrobras Argentina, media conglomerate Grupo Clarin, and the country's largest distributor of electricity, Edenor, among others. 

"It's a fraud that hurts all of Argentine society," he told media before testifying. "I helped the major economic groups launder money."

During his testimony, he described how he helped clients move funds to offshore accounts, using little-known legal loopholes. He stated that Argentina has some $70 billion worth of funds outside of the country, as part of the massive tax evasion scheme. 

InSight Crime Analysis

Arbizu, who has been under investigation since 2008 and has been indicted for banking fraud in the US, has his own reasons for speaking so freely about the extent of Argentina's tax evasion schemes. By fully cooperating with Argentine authorities in investigating suspicious banking activities, he is making himself so vital to investigators that there is less incentive to extradite him to the US. 

Meanwhile, Argentine authorities are under pressure -- both at home and abroad -- to show progress in the fight against money laundering, making Arbizu's willingness to testify all the more important. Inter-governmental body the Financial Action Task Force has asserted that Argentina is only partially compliant in properly fighting money laundering, while the country's main financial investigations unit has been accused of failing to fully investigate cases.

As Arbizu continues to detail the extent of his illicit activites while at JP Morgan, more questions will likely emerge over the extent to which private banks allow Argentina's wealthiest to hide their assets. The national financial investigations unit has already announced plans to formally accuse JP Morgan of money laundering.

share icon icon icon

Was this content helpful?

We want to sustain Latin America’s largest organized crime database, but in order to do so, we need resources.

DONATE

What are your thoughts? Click here to send InSight Crime your comments.

We encourage readers to copy and distribute our work for non-commercial purposes, with attribution to InSight Crime in the byline and links to the original at both the top and bottom of the article. Check the Creative Commons website for more details of how to share our work, and please send us an email if you use an article.

Was this content helpful?

We want to sustain Latin America’s largest organized crime database, but in order to do so, we need resources.

DONATE

Related Content

CARIBBEAN / 23 MAR 2023

High-ranking officials from the former government of President Danilo Medina in the Dominican Republic continue to fall.

ARGENTINA / 1 JUN 2023

Ransom kidnapping became a lucrative criminal economy in Argentina. But since 2015, they've nosedived. Why?…

ARGENTINA / 21 JAN 2022

Five years after a multimillion-dollar drug shipment was discovered in suitcases at the Russian Embassy in Argentina, a Russian court…

About InSight Crime

THE ORGANIZATION

All Eyes on Ecuador

2 JUN 2023

Our coverage of organized crime in Ecuador continues to be a valuable resource for international and local news outlets. Internationally, Reuters cited our 2022 Homicide Round-Up,…

WORK WITH US

Open Position: Social Media and Engagement Strategist

27 MAY 2023

InSight Crime is looking for a Social Media and Engagement Strategist who will be focused on maintaining and improving InSight Crime’s reputation and interaction with its audiences through publishing activities…

THE ORGANIZATION

Venezuela Coverage Receives Great Reception

27 MAY 2023

Several of InSight Crime’s most recent articles about Venezuela have been well received by regional media. Our article on Venezuela’s colectivos expanding beyond their political role to control access to…

THE ORGANIZATION

InSight Crime's Chemical Precursor Report Continues

19 MAY 2023

For the second week in a row, our investigation into the flow of precursor chemicals for the manufacture of synthetic drugs in Mexico has been cited by multiple regional media…

THE ORGANIZATION

InSight Crime’s Chemical Precursor Report Widely Cited

THE ORGANIZATION / 12 MAY 2023

We are proud to see that our recently published investigation into the supply chain of chemical precursors feeding Mexico’s synthetic drug production has been warmly received.