They are suspected of having abused their relationships to try to obtain a favorable decision from the French financial services policeman between 2009 and 2011. The Delubac bank, its manager and a former advisor to Nicolas Sarkozy will be tried for influence peddling , we learned Thursday from a source close to the matter.
Serge Bialkiewicz, partner and first manager of the bank, then in financial difficulty, is suspected of having appointed to the supervisory board Jean-François Étienne Des Rosaies, then honorary prefect and project manager at the presidency of the Republic under Nicolas Sarkozy.
In return for remuneration as a member of the council, Jean-François Étienne Des Rosaies allegedly solicited from 2009 those close to the Élysée and members of ministerial cabinets to obtain a favorable decision from the Prudential Control and Resolution Authority (ACPR). ).
At the time, the bank was in dispute with the ACPR over the assessment of the solvency ratio.
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Serge Bialkiewicz, 87, is referred to the Paris criminal court for active influence peddling and breach of trust;
the Delubac bank for active influence peddling by a legal entity, according to the order of referral and partial dismissal dated Wednesday.
“The bank and Serge Bialkiewicz have not committed any offense,” said the lawyers for the bank and Serge Bialkiewicz, Olivier Pardo and Jean-Pierre Mignard, who “completely contest the analysis” of the investigating judge.
Their clients “remain presumed innocent”, they emphasize, also pointing out that “10 years of investigation” is “far from being a reasonable period”, even though this procedure began in 2014.
“Particularly significant remuneration”
Jean-François Étienne Des Rosaies, now aged 82, and Aymeri de Montesquiou, ex-UDI senator, 81, were appointed members of the supervisory board of the Delubac bank in 2010 and 2011 respectively. According to the judge, for “special missions”, both received “particularly significant and much higher remuneration” than those of the other members who received only a few thousand euros: 500,000 euros for Jean-François Étienne Des Rosaies in total between 2010 and 2014 and 300,000 euros for Aymeri de Montesquiou between 2012 and 2016.
These missions did not cover “any tangible activity”, they were for Jean-François Étienne Des Rosaies the “counterpart of the interventions made for the benefit of the bank with various public decision-makers and in particular to facilitate or improve relations with the banking regulator”.
Jean-François Étienne Des Rosaies will be tried for passive influence peddling by a public agent and concealment of breach of trust and Aymeri de Montesquiou for concealment of breach of trust.
The Ardèche bank Delubac, founded in 1924, is a private financial institution specializing in judicial banking which employs around 300 people.