Ethics and governance in the European Financial centers

In a recent speech in Luxembourgish, Jeannot Krecké, who is Minister of the Economy and Foreign Trade in Luxembourg stated that « Mir musse vermëttelen, dass, och wa mir elo no OECD Standarden den Informatiounsaustausch praktizéieren, mir awer wëllen d’Bankgeheimnis heiheem weider bestoe lossen. Dëst ass jo och net dat eenzegt Argument fir eis Finanzplaz, op déi Lëtzebuerg sech och weiderhinn kann steepen” which means “We will implement the standards of OECD concerning the information exchange, but we want to maintain banking secrecy, on our premises. It is the only argument for our financial center, on which Luxembourg can continue to base itself”

The problem is that he (like every professional or politician in the jurisdiction) condones those who knowingly help to commit fraud through the Luxembourg financial center, and in a general rule, those who use professional secrecy to do what could be called obstruction to justice in some jurisdictions.

That is the reason why banking secrecy is no longer acceptable all the more than it is not a tradition in Luxembourg.

I find alarming that most leaders in Luxembourg can see banking secrecy as the “only argument” for the jurisdiction.

They should look for new cheese and ensure this new cheese is not corrupted by changing bad business habits that are emphasized because of the small size of the jurisdiction.