The German lender Commerzbank is suing accounting firm EY for the 200 million euros ($216.12 million) in losses it suffered in the Wirecard collapse, a bank spokesman said Thursday.
Wirecard’s demise two years ago shocked German business, placing politicians who had supported it under intense scrutiny, along with regulators who took years to investigate allegations against the payments company.
For years, EY was the company that audited and certified Wirecard’s books, even as journalists and investors questioned its finances.
The Commerzbank spokesman said the case had been filed with the court in Frankfurt in recent weeks.
An EY spokesperson said: “claims against EY for damages do not stand.” EY assumes that the judge will also maintain this position, the person added.
The bank’s lawsuit is one of many against EY regarding Wirecard.
Founded in 1999, Wirecard began processing payments for gambling and porn websites before becoming a fintech star and joining the German blue chip DAX index.
It ended by filing for insolvency in June 2020, owing creditors nearly $4 billion, after revealing a $1.9 billion hole in its accounts that EY said was the result of a sophisticated global fraud.
Manager Magazin was the first to publish the news of the lawsuit.
($1 = 0.9254 euros)
(Reporting by Hans Seidenstücker und Marta Orosz; written by Tom Sims; edited by Tomasz Janowski)
Photo: Payment company Wirecard’s logo is pictured at its headquarters in Munich, Germany, Monday, July 20, 2020. (TBEN Photo/Matthias Schrader)
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