Blanchiment d’argent: la banque face au risque pénal
This paper focuses on the main issues regarding the criminal liability of a bank for money laundering from a practical perspective. Substantive law as well as procedural aspects are considered. After an update on the practice of the criminal justice authorities, we examine the circle of agents able to trigger the liability of the corporation, notably in situations of outsourcing. Then, discussing a recent ruling of the Swiss Federal Supreme Court, we raise a point that is both of substantive and procedural concern, namely the articulation between the individual responsibility and that of the corporation. We turn to the sensitive issue of the company’s right to remain silent, whose application is restrictively interpreted by the Swiss Federal Supreme Court. This issue is of particular relevance to the fight against money laundering, which imposes on financial intermediaries specific duties to collaborate with the criminal justice authorities.