Published. After glancing around to check no one was looking, he picked up the drink. Iceland Arrested Their Criminal Bankers, Economy Booming « WonderLust […] economic downfall in Iceland are being rounded up like roaches, arrested, and put behind bars at an exponential rate. As of Mar. Four former bosses from the Icelandic bank Kaupthing have been sentenced to between three and five years in prison. There’s one country that’s actually making the wizards behind the global financial collapse pay for their crimes. So while it’s true that Iceland jailed bankers, tentatively recovered after being badly affected by 2008 global financial meltdown, and has historically enjoyed remarkably low rates of … Unlike the US and the UK, 29 bankers were jailed in the aftermath of Iceland's banking crisis. Inflation of consumer prices was running at 14%, and Iceland's interest rates had been raised to 15.5% to deal with the high inflation. Perhaps he might have learned a valuable lesson. Now, Iceland has truly started jailing its banksters. Bankers jailed, sued as Iceland seeks culprits for crisis. Published. REYKJAVIK: More than a year and a half after Iceland's major banks failed, all but sinking the country's economy, police have begun rounding up a number of top bankers while other former executives and owners face a two-billion-dollar lawsuit. Instead, he probably set out that morning collecting empty glasses with rosy-cheeked enthusiasm. Former director of the bank, Hreiðar Már Sigurðsson, who was found guilty and jailed last year, was also given a six-month extension to his sentence on Thursday. Instead, he skipped off across the field looking for someone else's pint of scrumpy to pour away. By. By contrast not a single senior banking executive in the US or the UK has been jailed for their role in the financial crisis. Part of HuffPost News. Iceland Just Jailed Dozens of Corrupt Bankers for 74 Years, The Opposite of What America Does Jay Syrmopoulos October 21, 2015 Reykjavik, Iceland – In stark contrast to the record low number of prosecutions of CEO’s and high-level financial executives in the U.S., Iceland has just sentenced 26 bankers to a combined 74 years in prison. So while it’s true that Iceland jailed bankers, tentatively recovered after being badly affected by 2008 global financial meltdown, and has historically enjoyed remarkably low rates of … The scale of the country's banking collapse made it impossible to prevent. On top of this came news last week that Britain's financial watchdog, the Financial Conduct Authority, has shelved a planned inquiry into the culture of banking. Whilst this inquiry was never going to hold the guilty to account, it was hoped that it might at least provide a level of transparency and analysis to help shape more rigorous future regulation. ©2021 BuzzFeed, Inc. All rights reserved. Instead, it illustrates how the baser elements of human nature will emerge and flourish in certain conditions. The Icelandic króna had declined more than 35% against the euro from January to September 2008. May 13, 2010. Still, fears of crony capitalism remain. Iceland has jailed 26 bankers, why won't we? Finally some banksters jailed! The timing was a little off, but the rest wasn't. Read the leading stories from the world of business. Eleven Icelandic former bankers have been sentenced to at least 4½ years in prison. Two of Iceland's most senior former bankers have been jailed for making reckless business loans, following investigations stemming from the collapse of the country's banks in 2008. Iceland’s Jailed Bankers Are Back, Demanding They Were Crisis Scapegoats. They are also being sued so that they will actually have to pay back the billions that are lining […] Menu He was showing the same behaviour of governments who prop up brutal dictators, sell arms to the highest bidder or wage wars of aggression for the sake of power and profit. When Iceland’s three major banks collapsed, it resulted in defaults totaling $114 billion in a country with agross domestic product (GDP) of only $19 billion. Subscribe here to our free email list for two information-packed emails per week. I wish I had confronted that boy outside the cider bus and told him that the pint he had just tipped away was mine. The domestic parts of the country's three biggest banks were saved, while their international arms were liquidated. Whilst the activities of these mini-entrepreneurs, eschewing face-painting in a field or story-telling in a yurt in favor of earning hard cash, may be dismissed as a harmless if depressing sign of the times, the actions of the boy at the cider bus offer something more. Bankers jailed, sued as Iceland seeks culprits for crisis, from the Daily Telegraph (Australia)/AFP. Please donate here to support this vital work. were sentenced to 25 years. The clearest example of why such regulation and cultural change are essential in the banking and beyond, presented to me some years ago, and in an unexpected way. As of Mar. Arrest Warrant Issued By Interpol For Sigurður Einarsson The former banking executive, who lives in West London, publicly blamed Gordon Brown for Kaupthing’s collapse in October 2008. Eleven of those bankers, who are former employers of Kaupþing, were sentenced to total 35 years in prison, while other seven individuals from Glitnir HoldCo. Iceland Dismantles The Corrupt, Arrests 10 Rothschild Bankers, Then Issues Interpol Arrest Warrant For Rothschild Banker Sigurdur Einarsson! By. So far, Iceland has sentenced 26 bankers to a combined 74 years in prison. Iceland has sentenced it’s 26th banker to prison for the role each banker played in the 2008 global economic collapse. By AFP Saturday 1 Apr 2017, 8:30 AM. IMAGINE THAT. Former employers of Landsbankinn got 13 years in total. On February 12, the Supreme Court of Iceland decided the fate of defendants in the so-called “Al-Thani case,” the first major case against the managers of the former banks to reach the court. Subscribe here to our free email list for two information-packed emails per week. At the time Milestone was a shareholder in the bank. Bondholders who had lent money to Iceland were "burned" with significant losses, but given control of the remains of the banks. Iceland‘s implosion was organized and orchestrated along with The United State‘s and other nation state collapses. The people of Iceland are currently doing what Americans can only dream of, dismantling a corrupt political system and arresting the bankers who caused the country’s financial collapse in 2008. We made it easy for you to exercise your right to vote. This is why Iceland was right to jail bankers - and Britain wrong to merely slap a few wrists and strip away a couple of knighthoods. This brings the total number of senior Icelandic bankers so far sentenced for crimes in the run-up to the 2008 banking crash to 29. Iceland's special prosecutor indicted the two former chief executives for their roles in approving the €35m loan just three months before the collapse of the bank. Reykjavik, Iceland – In stark contrast to the record low number of prosecutions of CEO’s and high-level financial executives in the U.S., Iceland has just sentenced 26 bankers to a combined 74 years in prison.. By jailing four top officers of Iceland's failed Kaupthing Bank, the country showed the world the right way to deal with the people largely responsible for the 2008 financial crisis, said Charlie McGrath, founder of news website, Wide Awake News. Executives At Collapsed Iceland Bank Jailed For Fraud Since the end… The sentences are longest for the most senior figures within the banks. Icelandic bankers jailed for reckless loans made before crash December 29 2012 04:46 AM Two of Iceland's most senior former bankers have been jailed … At 10 pence the refund did not provide incentive enough for most adults to return their glasses, hence the festival was filled with battalions of children weaving through the crowds, their wobbly stacks of plastics protruding like glistening shark fins. Here’s a typical one from the BBC, “Iceland jails former Kaupthing bank bosses” (12 December 2013). By pouring away someone else's £4 pint in order to get 10p in his pocket, the boy was displaying the same instincts as the bankers who maximised their profits, heedless of the damage being caused to the global financial system. (Bloomberg). For Hauksson, 52, now Iceland’s district prosecutor in charge of investigating all major crimes on the island, is the only person in the west to have jailed a big bank’s chief executive. Iceland was dealt a bad hand by its bankers, but it’s making at least some of them pay for that, which is more than we can say in the United States. So far, Iceland has sentenced 26 bankers to a combined 74 years in prison. Two of Iceland's most senior former bankers have been jailed for making reckless business loans, following investigations stemming from the collapse of the country's banks in 2008. Mr Welding has been indicted on separate charges for his role in approving a smaller business loan to holding company FS38 ehf, a company linked to the former high-profile former chief executive of the Baugur Group, Jon Asgeir Johannesson. Sections. After Joe Biden’s first 100 days in office, how do the markets view him now? 10 years ago. But instead of indulging in a bout of underage binge drinking, the little tyke emptied it onto the grass beneath the table. Iceland: Icelandic Bankers Jailed for Fraud (July 30, 2014) In a decision issued by the Reykjavik district court on December 12, 2013, two bank directors were among the parties imprisoned for fraud in connection with the banking crisis of 2008. Bankers felt top GDP had been achieved and that it was time to implode the system, while betting against the success of the nation state financial systems. Agence France-Presse. Claire Bernish October 29, 2015 Iceland — First, Iceland jailed its crooked bankers for their direct involvement in the financial crisis of 2008Now, every Icelander will receive a payout for the sale of one of its three largest banks, Íslandsbanki. They are the first bankers from Iceland's three largest lenders to be sentenced to jail for activities linked to the country's financial and economic collapse in 2008. And, they sent fraudulent bankers to jail. They have rewritten their constitution so such abuses of power and trust will (hopefully) never be allowed again. Today is National Voter Registration Day! The process of changing their government took […] He had not grown up in a moral vacuum and was perfectly aware that what he was doing was wrong. By jailing four top officers of Iceland's failed Kaupthing Bank, the country showed the world the right way to deal with the people largely responsible for the 2008 financial crisis, said Charlie McGrath, founder of news website, Wide Awake News. Iceland: Icelandic Bankers Jailed for Fraud (July 30, 2014) In a decision issued by the Reykjavik district court on December 12, 2013, two bank directors were among the parties imprisoned for fraud in connection with the banking crisis of 2008. This may appear to be strange behaviour but in an attempt to be environmentally friendly this festival, like many others, offered a small refund on plastic glasses. For bankers, risky sales were incentivised with enormous bonuses, and bad debt was insured against with credit default swaps. 18, we're $4,500 in the red for the year. Combined, the bankers will spend 74 years behind bars. Zero Hedge – by Tyler Durden. Iceland Jailed Bankers and Rejected Austerity -- and It’s Been a Success Lars Plougmann / CC BY 2.0 When the global economic crisis hit in 2008, Iceland suffered terribly — … Icelanders who pelted parliament with rocks in 2009 demanding their leaders and bankers answer for the country’s economic and financial collapse are reaping the benefits of their anger. Like the boy, the bankers thought they could get away with it. Both countries' banks went bust, both got bailed out by the International Monetary Fund, and both did austerity afterward. Monday to Friday. This article contains some material previously published by the author on Huffington Post. Tap here to turn on desktop notifications to get the news sent straight to you. All of the criminal cases are linked to the notorious crash of the Icelandic banking system in 2008. Sign Up, Dad captures hearts with videos of him singing to dying son, Dr Mike Ryan: 'We're expecting the virus to slow down and we're pushing the accelerators', Take a look at Ireland's largest domestic passenger ferry, linking Galway and the Aran Islands, Ireland's latest vaccine rollout in figures, Aer Lingus owner IAG cautious on short-term flying recovery, The battle to turn lockdown savers into spenders, Deals like CETA are no longer about free trade, EU clampdown targets Chinese state-sponsored takeover deals, Cuisine de France owner Aryzta completes the sale of North American business. He almost certainly did not begin the day tipping out full pints of cider. 10 years ago. Please donate here to support this vital work. It is this shift in moral boundaries and the circumstances under which it happens that hold the key to understanding where societies go wrong. Philip Lane says deficits will ‘self-correct’ as economies reopen, Pound rises as Scottish referendum prospects dim after SNP falls short, EU to name and shame banks that fail to fight money laundering, Chinese investment into EU has hit €79bn, report says, I was accused of being a cute Kerry hoor last week - but I still believe the Kingdom can beat the Dubs, Three men arrested as gardaí seize €188,000 in operation targeting organised crime, Man forced into bath and had most of his ear cut off in six-hour ordeal, Company director who won 'more than €60,000' in earlier personal injury claims disappeared from court as he 'knew game was up’, Remaining Rainbow Cup fixtures, kick-off times and live TV details announced. Sign up for membership to become a founding member and help shape HuffPost's next chapter, Journalist; Writer; Broadcaster; and Human Rights Campaigner. The conditions in this case are an unregulated free-market within a materialistic, consumer-driven culture. Just before Christmas, the former CEO of Iceland’s Glitnir bank and two other senior bankers were sentenced to jail terms of up to five years for market manipulation and breach of fiduciary duties. I was at a weekend music festival, in a sunny field talking with friends outside a double-decker cider bus when my eye was drawn to a boy who could not have been older than ten. The majority of those convicted have been sentenced to prison terms of two to five years. He was showing the same motivation of those working for big corporations that exploit our planet's natural resources regardless of environmental and human costs. I'm sure that there was nothing inherently bad about the boy. Read in-depth account of the crisis. Iceland's jailed bankers say they were scapegoats for the financial crisis They’re taking their cases to the European Court of Human Rights. But as the day went on he became more avaricious and his boundaries began to shift. Agence France-Presse. This brings the total number of senior Icelandic bankers so far sentenced for crimes in the run-up to the 2008 banking crash to 29. Iceland Continues To Grow Using ‘Startups’ By Replacing ‘Banks’: Iceland Refused To Bailout Rothschild’s Corrupt Banking Cabal. This field is required They were sentenced by the Reykjavik District Court after the two men were indicted a year ago on charges that they had "misused their position and grossly endangered the bank's funds" by lending €102m to a company called Milestone ehf without guarantees or collateral, the prosecutor said. What you wouldn’t know, if you just been looking at the headlines (Google “Iceland jails bankers” and you’ll see what I mean), is that Iceland had not actually been jailing bankers. Bankers jailed, sued as Iceland seeks culprits for crisis, from the Daily Telegraph (Australia)/AFP. In 2008 Glitnir became the first of Iceland's big banks to fail, an event that triggered the biggest recession in six decades and led to an 80pc collapse in the value of the Icelandic currency (Krona) against the euro. Larus Welding, the former chief executive officer of failed Icelandic bank Glitnir, and Gudmundur Hjaltason, a former director at the bank, have each been sentenced to nine months in jail for fraud, a court ruled. 18, we're $4,500 in the red for the year. I would have liked to have seen his shame at being caught and his discomfort at having to hand over four of his hard-earned pound coins. Whilst banks - such as the five found to be rigging the Libor rate - have been hit with substantial fines, the individual bankers behind the fraud, market rigging and irresponsible lending that led to the economic meltdown have all avoided time behind bars. He was hanging around a nearby table surreptitiously eyeing-up a full but unattended pint. on. Enter email address on. This is not to say this boy had somehow taken his lead from those around him or that the corruption at the top our society mysteriously trickles down. May 13, 2010. And like the boy, the bankers - other than those in Iceland - were right. Not so in Iceland, where jail sentences handed out last week bring the number of bankers imprisoned over the meltdown to 26. Mr Johannesson, who has also been indicted in relation to the loan, became famous in business circles around the world in the years before the Icelandic crash for a debt-fuelled acquisition spree that included a string of high-profile retailers including department store chain House of Fraser, Hamleys toy shops, , frozen food chain Iceland, fashion chain All Saints and Woolworths. Iceland is the only nation that put top finance executives behind bars after the 2008 crisis. Iceland: Where Bankers Go to Jail for 74 Years. 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