Swiss Bank Reyl at center of anti-money laundering scandal
By Vijaya Laxmi Tripura
Switzerland’s pristine image as a global financial powerhouse is again under serious scrutiny following revelations that one of its elite private banks, Reyl Intesa Sanpaolo, has systematically failed in its anti-money laundering (AML) obligations.
Leaked internal correspondence between the bank and the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA), obtained by the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) and Le Monde, paints a disturbing picture of complicity, regulatory indifference, and a deeply entrenched culture of secrecy.
At the heart of the storm is Reyl, a Geneva-based boutique bank that has long marketed itself as a discreet and customer-focused institution for wealthy international clients.
It boasts the kind of exclusivity and tailored services that attract politically exposed persons (PEPs), high-net-worth individuals, and foreign dignitaries.
But according to FINMA’s findings, this sophistication masked a deep-seated failure to conduct proper due diligence and a troubling tolerance for high-risk clients linked to corruption and authoritarian regimes.
The documents reveal that Reyl has, for years, served clients with serious red flags-including former Russian officials, Central Asian elites, and individuals under active investigation.
FINMA’s inspection during the summer of 2023 uncovered what it diplomatically referred to as a “very high level of AML risk appetite.” Internally, however, this was seen as bordering on negligence.
By January 2024, FINMA escalated the matter to its enforcement division-signaling its concern that Reyl’s practices went beyond mere oversight and into systemic noncompliance.
One of the most damning findings from FINMA’s letters was the sheer scale of procedural neglect. Over 1,400 customer accounts had not undergone mandatory “know your customer” (KYC) reviews for more than five years, a violation that undermines the very foundations of AML protocols.
Additionally, thousands of internal alerts-automatically triggered by suspicious financial activity-were left unattended for months, if not longer.
These failures suggest a willful disregard for regulatory norms, especially alarming in a country that claims to uphold the highest global financial standards.
Among Reyl’s most controversial clients was Leonid Reiman, Russia’s former telecommunications minister and a close associate of President Vladimir Putin. Despite Reiman’s known involvement in questionable financial activities-he was found by a Swiss tribunal to have orchestrated a self-enriching scheme involving offshore firms-Reyl actively sought his business.
The bank initiated a relationship with Reiman in 2015, with former CEO François Reyl reportedly meeting him personally. By late 2023, five accounts tied to Reiman held approximately CHF 81 million (USD 94 million).
Only after international media investigations brought public attention to these connections did Reyl’s internal client committee decide to terminate the relationship, citing “reputational risk.”
Notably, just months earlier, that same committee had seen no issue with maintaining Reiman as a client.
But Reiman was far from alone. The bank also managed accounts for the son-in-law of Islam Karimov, Uzbekistan’s late dictator; the daughter of a former Kazakh president currently facing criminal investigations in Switzerland; and Olivier Mestelan, a Swiss asset manager linked financially to Azerbaijan’s ruling Aliyev family.
The latter case is particularly illustrative of the problem. Mestelan, a long-time client, reportedly managed assets on behalf of President Ilham Aliyev’s children, who secretly control offshore firms involved in Azerbaijan’s mining and telecommunications sectors.
Azerbaijani investigative journalist Khadija Ismayilova, who exposed the financial dealings of the Aliyev family, was imprisoned on politically motivated charges in 2015.
Despite the glaring risk of reputational and legal fallout from such associations, Reyl allowed Mestelan’s accounts to remain largely unscrutinized, further highlighting the bank’s tolerance for opaque, high-risk clientele.
Despite FINMA’s findings and the severity of Reyl’s failures, there have been no immediate consequences.
While the regulator has the authority to refer cases to criminal prosecutors, impose fines, or even revoke banking licenses, it has thus far refrained from launching formal proceedings.
Reyl, for its part, has asserted that it is cooperating fully with authorities and reaffirmed its commitment to compliance. Yet it also filed a complaint against OCCRP, alleging that the organization violated Switzerland’s strict banking secrecy laws by reporting on the matter.
This legal backlash underscores the paradox at the core of Switzerland’s financial system: while the country claims to combat global corruption, its own laws criminalize the exposure of financial misconduct.
Swiss banking secrecy, codified in the 1930s, remains a formidable barrier to transparency. Since 2015, whistleblowers and journalists have faced heightened legal risks for publishing client-related information-even when that information pertains to criminal activity.
“This is a law that criminalizes journalism,” said Irene Khan, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on freedom of expression, in a statement to Paper Trail Media.
The growing hostility toward investigative journalism in Switzerland serves only to protect the financial elite and embolden wrongdoing within its banking system.
Reyl’s conduct also mirrors past scandals involving other major Swiss banks. In 2022, the “Suisse Secrets” investigation revealed how Credit Suisse harbored money for clients accused of human rights abuses, drug trafficking, and corruption.
Similarly, HSBC Suisse and UBS have been implicated in enabling illicit wealth flows. Despite repeated international embarrassments, Swiss lawmakers have proven unwilling to enact serious reforms.
In late 2023, the upper house of parliament even voted to expand restrictions on publishing “illegally obtained” data, further criminalizing whistleblowing and investigative reporting.
Even individuals with tainted histories, like François Reyl himself, seem immune to real accountability. Reyl was convicted in France in 2016 for helping a former minister conceal undeclared assets, yet he remained CEO until 2024 and now continues to serve on the bank’s board.
His continued influence within the institution exemplifies the cozy relationship between Swiss finance and impunity.
The Reyl case is particularly galling considering the bank’s recent accolades. In 2021, it was named “Best Private Banking Boutique in Europe,” mere months before FINMA began identifying what it called “material weaknesses” in its AML systems.
By 2023, the regulator’s tone had hardened significantly, declaring those weaknesses “unsatisfactory.” Yet even now, enforcement remains slow and tepid.
This scandal not only reveals systemic flaws at Reyl but also illustrates a broader issue within the Swiss financial sector: a persistent reluctance to confront the consequences of its secretive practices.
While Swiss authorities may speak the language of transparency and compliance, the reality is that they continue to facilitate the global flow of illicit money by shielding their financial institutions from meaningful oversight.
Without real political will-without robust legal reforms and the empowerment of regulatory agencies to act decisively-Swiss banks will remain comfortable sanctuaries for autocrats, oligarchs, and kleptocrats.
Wrapped in the velvet of elite discretion and fortified by century-old secrecy laws, institutions like Reyl can continue to quietly manage the world’s dirtiest money, safe from both scrutiny and justice.
As global leaders call for greater financial accountability in the fight against corruption and authoritarianism, Switzerland stands at a crossroads.
It can either uphold its legacy of discretion at all costs or join the international community in building a truly transparent and just financial system. So far, all signs point to the former.
