The European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO) in Bucharest announces having filed charges against four suspects believed to be part of a criminal ring with ties to Italian mafia groups, in a case of an EUR 4.3 million subsidy fraud involving EU and national funds.In a statement this Tuesday, EPPO said that allegations are that the defendants formed a criminal group with other suspects to provide false letters of guarantee to awardees of EU-funded projects, which claimed to insure the projects against potential damages. In exchange for issuing the letters, the suspects are understood to have collected large amounts of money. According to the prosecutors, the suspects are believed to have carried out this fraudulent scheme in the name of companies registered in Czechia and Latvia, which did not have the right to issue letters of guarantee, nor the financial resources to cover the insured damages.The use of these documents resulted in an illicit gain of approximately EUR 4.3 million, most of the amount coming from the European Regional Development Fund, the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development and the Regional Operational Programme.The move of EPPO Bucharest is the result of several investigations into criminal schemes using the same modus operandi, following house searches conducted in Romania and France in May 2023. Earlier, in 2023, other suspects were charged and are currently awaiting trial. Also, EUR 450,000 worth of assets were seized.If found guilty, the defendants face between four and 15 years of imprisonment.Based on the principle of loyal cooperation, the EPPO has alerted the Romanian Ministry of Investment and European projects about the existence of possible vulnerabilities in the management of European funds, which result in a significantly low level of protection of EU's financial interests in Romania.According to the operation methods identified in several cases, the elements that generated a high risk of fraud in EU-funded contracts consisted in the use of letters of guarantee issued by fictitious entities, or that didn't have the right to issue such documents. The bogus documents helped the fraudsters win several public award procedures, and consequently EPPO opened several investigations therein.
ASFAT, a wholly state-owned company operating under Türkiye’s Ministry of National Defence (MoND), has signed an agreement for the delivery of the light corvette Akhisar to the Romanian Naval Forces. This transaction represents a milestone for Türkiye’s defence industry, as it is the first international sale of a combat ship built in Türkiye to a […]
Wind projects with a total capacity of almost 316 MW have been declared winners in the third auction under the Contracts for Difference (CfD) scheme, above the minimum threshold set by the Ministry of Energy, according to sources quoted by Economica.net. The third auction was organised because of insufficient projects approved under...
Fitch Ratings has affirmed the long-term Issuer Default Rating (IDR) of Romania-based, state-owned bank CEC Bank at BB/stable, its Viability Rating (VR) at bb, and Government Support Rating (GSR) at b, based on the bank's moderate, albeit strengthening, business profile, adequate capitalisation, and reasonable funding and liquidity. This puts the Romanian bank's rating two notches […]
Romania's Ministry of Transport blocked a key procedural step required for the listing of Bucharest Airports Company on the Stock Exchange (BVB) after opposing an item on the shareholders' agenda concerning the resumption of the auditor selection process. The vote took place at the end of November, following a request by Fondul Proprietatea, which holds […]
Romania has begun work on a specialised production facility in Măgurele, near Bucharest, that will manufacture laboratory-grade mirrors and lenses, including components for the world’s most powerful laser hosted at the adjacent research centre, Digi24 reported. The...
The Treasury set a coupon of 6.55% for the 2-year state bonds on sale in the primary retail market in December, 40 basis points from 6.95% paid in November, and 65 basis points lower compared to October. The coupons for the other maturities have decreased accordingly to 7.1% for the 4-year maturity (-25 bp from […]
