Investors in the payment card issuer Wirecard have accused Germany's supervisory authority (BaFin) of refusing to investigate the company, which is suspected of financial fraud.
Bloomberg has reported the plaintiffs claim that the regulator should have known about the financial problems of Wirecard AG, which has allegedly been suffering since the beginning of last year. However, the institution has reportedly neglected its obligations. Andreas W. Tilp, the lawyers of the plaintiffs, has said:
"If Bafin had properly investigated the matter, any wrongdoing would have come to light earlier."
BaFin has reportedly been ignoring reports from investors, journalists and authorities about Wirecard's machinations for 10 years as it put all its attention on short sellers.
However, a BaFin spokesman has questioned the legality of the lawsuit, stating the agency acted in the public interest rather than investors, "on every indication of wrongdoing."
In June it was known Wirecard had failed to confirm the company had €1.9B in its accounts. Shortly after that, the company went bankrupt.
Subscribe to our Telegram channel to stay up to date on the latest crypto and blockchain news.