The meeting where the issuing of state guarantees for providing emergency loans by the National Bank of Moldova to the three banks involved in the bank fraud, even if the state didn’t manage the financial institutions, was discussed was initiated by Vladimir Plahotniuc, who then served as first deputy president of the Democratic Party, supported by Vlad Filat, then leader of the Liberal Democratic Party, the  bank fraud inquiry commission’s chairman Alexandru Slusari was quoted by IPN as saying in a press briefing

Alexandru Slusari said that as a result of the hearings held by the commission on July 16, which involved former member of the Board of Banca de Economii (BEM) Victor Bodiu and ex-Parliament Speaker Igor Corman, it was established that at that meeting , Vladimir Plahotniuc, supported by Vlad Filat, tried to persuade those attending that securities should be issued to cover the emergency loans that were to be provided by the central bank to Banca de Economii, Banca Socială and Unibank.

That meeting was attended by former Speaker Igor Corman, the then Prime Minister Iurie Leancă, the then President Nicolae Timofti and the then governor of the National Bank Dorin Drăguțanu. “Some 80% of the robbed bank funds were stolen from the three banks between the start and the end of November 2014, following the issuing of state guarantees. After these guarantees were secured by the Leancă Government, the Shor group withdrew 13.54 billion lei from the three banks through Banca Socială,” stated Alexandru Slusari.

He also said that Banca de Economii could have been saved by capitalization at the end of 2012 or the start of 2013 and the financial resources that were to be provided to the bank’s shareholders, including the minority ones, were identified with the support of the National Bank. “They didn’t want BEM to be saved. Such a move was blocked by political factors at Parliament level and, as we determined based on particular information, Vlad Filat himself blocked this step,” noted the chairman.

According to him, the next round of hearings set for July 18 are to involve former MP Oleg Reidman, current MPs Sergiu Sîrbu and Vladimir Vitiuc and former BEM president Viorel Bîrcă, who didn’t present himself at the July 16 hearings.