A number of banks in Western and Northern Europe are exiting operations in poorer markets due to concerns over exposure to money-laundering activity. Following the revelation of money laundering at Danske Bank's Estonian branch, for example, European banks have been scaling back their footprints across the Baltics and Russia. Additionally, at a recent Scandinavian parliament hearing, Deutsche Bank's head of anti-financial crime said the institution had reduced corresponding banking relationships by 40% since 2016 while exiting some markets, like Moldova, completely.
A number of banks in Western and Northern Europe are exiting operations in poorer markets due to concerns over exposure to money-laundering activity. Following the revelation of money laundering at Danske Bank's Estonian branch, for example, Scandinavian banks have been scaling back their footprints across the Baltics and Russia. Additionally, at a recent European parliament hearing, Deutsche Bank's head of anti-financial crime said the institution had reduced corresponding banking relationships by 40% since 2016 while exiting some markets, like Moldova, completely.