The founder of Banco Comercial Português (BCP,) Jardim Gonçalves, was sentenced today to two years in prison, suspended upon payment of €600,000, for the crime of market manipulation.
The shamed founder of BCP considered that his conviction is a "painful moment" but has every hope of being acquitted on appeal and has yet to apologise for his actions as one of the country's top bankers.
"The conviction today is certainly a painful moment," reads a widely leaked private message sent out by Jardim Gonçalves on Friday. "However, the fact that the court considered that neither I or any other employees on trial had anything to do with either the creation of' offshore companies, nor with purchases and sales of shares in them, does justice to the position I've always held, that there was no plan via 'offshore' companies to support BCP.”
Jardim was still convicted despite his protestations of innocenceand said he sees nothing wrong in the creation of covert offshore companies in the Cayman Islands to front a share support operation, and trusts that “the appeal of the sentence will allow the superior courts to recognise that there was nothing irregular."
As to the remaining defendants, all former directors of BCP, Filipe Pinhal and António Rodrigues were sentenced to two years in prison, suspended, and have to pay damages of €300,000 each or they will go to jail; Christopher de Beck was acquitted of all charges.
All four were acquitted of the crime of falsification of documents. The court also ordered the three defendants should not be allowed to hold directorships or management positions in companies or financial institutions for four years - this at least will mean Gonçalves will be out in the cold, unable to participate in the the cosy world of Portuguese banking, ample time to consider his 'painful moment,' and the nasty public that has develped the impression that the country's bankers include crooks and charlatans.
Banco Comercial Português (BCP) operates in the high street as Millennium BCP was founded in 1985 by Gonçalves and some of his friends in the Oporto community.
In 2008 the bank reported a profit of €200 million, however by 2012 the bank was in deep trouble and was rescued by a state bailout of the astounding amount of €3 billion from money taken from the bailout fund sent by the Troika.
Even before this rescue, the bank courted controversy as in 2007 the Millennium BCP accounts were investigated by Portuguese financial crime investigators, Bank of Portugal officials, and the stock market authorities.
The preliminary findings of the stock market team alleged the existence of several off-shore companies which Millennium BCP 'may have used to buy its own shares' when it increased its capital in both 2000 and 2001.
One of the shareholders, José Berardo, provided investigators with documents indicating that several illegalities had occurred and the finger was pointed at several previous board directors and managers.
Today’s court result comes 7 years after the investigation started, nobody has been jailed, nobody has apologised, and the fines presumably are easily affordable by these convicted financial wizards.
