UBS is again singled out by a consortium of media and NGOs who have dissected bank data from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The bank is accused of lacking curiosity about funds used to buy agricultural machinery.

The bank allegedly received suspicious sums used to buy agricultural machinery for the land of former DRC President Joseph Kabila, in power between 2001 and 2019. According to a consortium of media and NGOs, the latter allegedly embezzled 138 million dollars during the last years of his reign According to the Swiss NGO Public Eye, which took part in this investigation called Congo Hold-up, the Swiss bank would have failed in its duty to verify the origin of the funds used to buy agricultural machinery for the land of former President Joseph Kabila, in power between 2001 and 2019. The suspicious contract was for just over $7 million. This sum would have been transferred on September 25, 2012 to an account hosted by UBS in Zurich. The reason for the transaction – “purchase of agricultural equipment” – seems trivial.