Claims by a Portuguese financial institution that the Danish Saxo Bank manipulated stock and currency prices have been vehemently denied by the bank’s founders.
Kim Fournais and Lars Seier Christensen, two of Saxo’s CEOs and largest shareholders, along with several other bank employees, have been reported to Danish police over accusations of fraud, according to The Copenhagen Post. One of Saxo’s major clients, the Portuguese financial institution Fortune, accused the bank’s management of deliberately manipulating both currency exchange and stock prices.
In recent weeks, Saxo has come under increasing fire for using what some have called dubious business models and methods when servicing their customers. A number of financial executives have alleged that around 90 percent of Saxo clients lost investments in the first six months of their outlay.
Fortune claims it has been left out of pocket to the tune of 10 million euros following Saxo Bank’s manipulation of the share prices of companies including Volkswagen, Goldman Sachs and Apple in relation to contract for difference (CFD) settlements. Joao Laranjeira, Fortune CEO, said that the matter was referred to the authorities so they could decide if criminal activity had taken place.
Christensen refuted the firm’s allegations and argued that Fortune’s actions were ‘un-Danish’. “It’s very odd that for over a year and a half Fortune has threatened to sue us,” said Christensen. “And so they suddenly take the completely incomprehensible step of filing a police report instead.”
Fournais and Christensen also denied the 90 percent loss figures, indicating that only 48 percent of ‘platform’ customers experienced a five percent loss in the past year despite the financial crisis, while 32 percent earned over five percent in returns.
