Mozambique’s citizens are the victim of likely the most egregious corruption scandal of the 21st century. As explained on GAB and numerous media accounts (here, here, here, and here), employees of Swiss banking giant Credit Suisse together with Mozambique government officials, and Middle East ship-building company Privinvest put the country’s government on the hook for $2.2 billion in loans for projects of little or no value. Citizens of one of the word’s poorest nations are now stuck repaying them.

Some of the only good news to come out of this enormous crime was the Mozambique’s government decision to bring suit against Credit Suisse, Privinvest, and some of the other perpetrators in London (complaint here). A favorable judgment could not only result in cancelling the debt but an award of damages. Damages because of the enormous hit the Mozambique economy took when the loans, hidden because they were taken out in violation of an IMF bailout loan, were finally revealed.

Earlier today the Mozambique government announced it had settled with UBS, which assumed Credit Suisse’s liability when it took the bank over. On its face, the settlement appears to be a very good deal for UBS. Whether it is a good one for the citizens of Mozambique remains to be seen.

Mozambique’s Prosecutor General disclosed some of the terms in a press conference earlier today in Maputo. According to an on-scene report,

1. Under the agreement, the obligations of both parties (UBS – Credit Suisse and government) regarding ProIndicus’ debt [one of the state-owned companies whose debt the government guaranteed, estimated at $100 million] are settled;

2. The government did not announce the monetary benefits of the agreement and the details, and informed that it would do so in due course;

3. The Minister of Economy and Finance reported that the Government spends around 3.5 million pounds per month on lawyers and other costs involved, and since February 2019, when the case began, Mozambique has had an accumulated total of 80 million dollars. One of the benefits of this agreement is that it will significantly reduce the amount spent, and the action that will continue is on the Privinvest Group;

An important issue is whether UBS will assist the government in pursuing its case against Privinvest, the only remaining defendant with pockets deep enough to even come close to making Mozambican citizens whole for the losses they suffered. This would seem to a critical element for the files of Credit Suisse and the testimony of current employees likely make plain just how corruptly Privinvest acted in arranging the loans. When asked about this, the Prosecutor General appeared to say such an agreement was not part of the settlement, but that the government would be “open” to such help. For the sake of Mozambique’s citizens, let’s hope UBS makes such an offer.

The Prosecutor General’s statement from today’s press conference is here in the original and here in Google translation to English.