UniCredit's German unit raided in VAT fraud probe, reports Bloomberg

BERLIN (Reuters) - Italian bank UniCredit's unit in Munich has been raided as part of a possible 200-million-euro value-added tax (VAT) fraud investigation, Bloomberg News reported on Friday, citing a person familiar with the situation.

UniCredit did not immediately comment on the report.

The European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO) said in a statement that it had conducted searches at a bank in Munich over possible VAT fraud, without naming the bank involved.

Under investigation is the managing director of a firm that is suspected to have been set up solely to process his transactions via the company's bank accounts, the EPPO said.

The suspect received bank transfers totalling over 200 million euros ($212 million) from 127 different companies in Italy and Slovakia to his accounts in Germany from 2016 to 2022, it added.

According to the EPPO, the cash was disbursed by bank employees and payments were authorised under the relevant monitoring obligations even though they should have triggered suspicion.

"In this regard, it is currently being evaluated whether the bank carried out the necessary due diligence measures under the Anti-Money Laundering Act," said the EPPO in the statement.

($1 = 0.9447 euros)

(Reporting by Miranda Murray, additional reporting Valentia Za, editing by Thomas Seythal)