The operative of Vall Banc cannot be guaranteed…

The banking crisis that the principality is currently going through, generated by the case of the Banca Privada d’Andorra (BPA), gets worse day-by-day, without that the government can do anything to prevent the once thriving financial center from sinking. Not even guaranteeing the operative of Vall Banc – the bank tutelage since July of this year by the American vulture fund J.C. Flowers.

Vall Banc has not aptly applied the necessary restructuring measures, nor shown stability, despite being one of the best-capitalized banks of Andorra. Nor a bank that meets the desires and expectations of its clients, since it has not offered any personalized financial solutions and strategies. In addition, their digital services of the private banking division is a real fiasco.

Its principle of ethics and of absolute integrity, as they preach, has been inconsistent in acting irresponsibly and dishonest according to the interests of its clients and partners. Its CEO, Christoph Lieber, has ignored the commitment to provide highest professionalism, accuracy, service and transparency to its clients, partners and owners, and his priority until now has never been to safeguard the assets of the clients.

The new financial entity has not complied strictly with the laws and regulations applicable to its activities; in addition, it has not avoided the risks that can harm its reputation, both on a business and employee level. Despite the fact that each of its specialists in private banking offer their services only to a limited number of clients, the investors have not been given a constant and personalized service, but actually without having any solutions according to the needs and problems of each client.

Vall Banc has not at all been a responsible partner with its private banking portfolio, for not having acted reliably and with discretion in the best interests of the clients, without offering them any opportunities, and avoiding unforeseeable risks to their patrimony and family businesses.

In the area of investment advice for those clients who prefer to decide for themselves how to make their investments, they have not complied with the specific provisions made exclusively through agreements. Not at all been collaborative, nor have they developed an investment strategy adapted to the individual expectations of risk and profitability of each affected client. In addition, it is a vicious lie that all decisions remain in the hands of its clients, who at no time have benefited from their supposed independence and strict neutrality.

Despite the fact that the CEO of the vulture fund, J. Christopher Flowers, showed his commitment to help the clients affected by the financial center of reference, during his meeting with the prime minister Antoni Martí, no strategy has been implemented so far to help get out of the rut that Vall Banc is currently in.

“We will help transform the bank, to become leader, by its results, innovation and services. In the next coming months, Vall Banc will expand its services, and clients will begin to see substantial improvements in their interaction with the bank,” did J. Christopher Flowers say last September 5, but the promises have now simply remained as part of the speech. His urge to encourage the team of Vall Banc, headed by its president Michael Christner, to maintain the effort and to work without a break for the full restoration of services and the operative, has ran into a wall.

All this has led to an absolute distrust in the Andorran financial system, since there has been no provision for J.C. Flowers to help contribute in boosting the country as a financial center of reference. So his speech of wanting to “have a prominent role in rebuilding the reputation of Andorra as a major European financial center”, has been left in tatters.

Although the Prime Minister, Toni Martí, has said, that the government has hired experts to evaluate the measures and that it is being worked on in this way, after having appeared before the special legislative committee, which deals with the case of BPA. The reality is that the situation is very complicated for savers, and it will further complicate if the General Council finally approves the law of automatic exchange of tax information that will trade in force as of January 1 of 2017. This means that the data of the balances for the accounts of foreigners in BPA and Vall Banc will automatically be communicated to the tax authorities in Spain, France, and the rest the countries in the OECD.

In the case of accounts in excess of 1 million euros, the thousands of foreign clients of BPA and Vall Banc will have to close their accounts in the country of the Pyrenees before the end of this year if they want to avoid the exchange of tax information. Apart, Vall Banc would have to unlock the current balances in dollars and the variable interest rate portfolios immediately so that the clients will have enough time to gain access to their savings in the American currency.

Time passes and if Vall Banc does not resolve the demands of thousands of clients who want to recover their capital, it could get a very serious sanction, including its imminent closure.