Former head of Danske Bank’s scandal-hit Estonia branch found dead

Former head of Danske Bank’s scandal-hit Estonia branch found dead
By bne IntelliNews September 25, 2019

The former head of Danske Bank’s Estonian branch, Aivar Rehe, was found dead on September 25, two days after being reported missing from his home in the Tallinn suburb of Pirita. 

Rehe was appointed to head Danske Estonia in 2006 and was in charge of the bank between 2007 and 2015, during which time the branch was revealed to have funnelled billions of euros in a massive breach of national and EU anti-money-laundering regulations. However, he was not among the suspects in the investigation into the laundering of an estimated €200bn. 

Rehe was last seen alive leaving his home at around 10am local time on September 23. A police officer told ETV current affairs show Aktuaalne kaamera that the police had "reason to believe that his life and health may be in jeopardy” at this time. 

Police found Rehe’s body in his own back garden, after calling off a search of nearby forests the previous evening, the Police and Border Guard Board (PPA) confirmed to ERR. 

Following numerous reports in the Danish and UK media, Danske Bank admitted last September that an estimated €200bn worth of payments went through its Estonian branch between 2007 and 2015, many of them suspicious.

In February, the Estonian authorities ordered the Danish bank to shut down its Estonian operations, giving it eight months to complete the closure. 

Danske Bank announced on the same day it would also be closing its branches in Lithuania, Latvia, and Russia. That is because of the bank’s strategy to focus on Nordic markets, the bank said.

Related Articles

Former Latvian PNB Bank depositors face August deadline

Former depositors of now insolvent Latvia’s AS PNB Banka who have yet to resolve any legal claims have been reminded of a looming deadline by the regulator, the Latvian central bank, Latvijas Banka ... more

Baltic banks must be clearer on their sustainability goals – only five out of 24 Baltic banks commit to net-zero

Only five out of 24 Baltic banks commit to net-zero, and the rest need to step up, argue Vaida Arlauskaitė and Monika Aleksiejute-Jonusauskiene of the consultancy Viridis Sustainability, LRT.lt, the ... more

SEB Estonia finishes 2023 by doubling profits to €232mn

SEB Pank, Estonia's second largest commercial bank, finished 2023 with a profit of €231.7mn, similarly to Swedbank which more than doubled its profits against last year from €115.9mn, ERR.ee, the ... more

Dismiss