2024-09-06 08:48:33
Another decision in the Wirecard trial: The verdict now demands 140 million euros in damages for the creditors. However, the former chairman of the supervisory board is spared.
The Munich Regional Court has sentenced three former Wirecard board members to pay a total of 140 million euros in damages plus interest. Presiding Judge Helmut Krenek assumes that they acted at least negligently when granting a loan and subscribing to bonds and must therefore be held liable for the damage caused.
Specifically, it concerns the former CEO Markus Braun and the finance and product directors. The lawsuit was brought by insolvency administrator Michael Jaffé, who wants to secure money for creditors through the proceedings. The verdict is not yet legally binding. On the contrary: process observers expect that there will be appeals.
However, Jaffé failed in one part of the lawsuit: the former deputy chairman of the supervisory board is not to pay according to the ruling. Krenek also found that he had violated his supervisory duties. However, according to the judge, this does not lead to liability. Because the management board had not complied with the supervisory board’s instructions in the past, it is not certain whether measures taken by the supervisory board would have helped in both cases.
The court, however, saw clear responsibility in the case of the three board members because the loan was not secured and there had been no thorough financial review before the bonds were issued. In the case of Braun and the CFO, Krenek derived responsibility directly from their departmental responsibilities. In the case of the product director, he argued that she should have become suspicious.