The Supreme Court of Iceland has sentenced brothers Karl Wernersson and Steingrímur Wernersson to 3.5 and 2 years in prison, respectively, for breach of fiduciary duty local news site visir.is reports. In the two years leading up to the 2008 crash the brothers had arranged for Milestone, a company they controlled, to pay their sister 4.8 billion ISK (approximately 68 million USD/52 million EUR) for shares in the company.
Read more: Bankers Behind Bars: A guided walking tour through the collapse of Iceland's banking system in 2008
The former CEO of Milestone, Guðmundur Ólason was also found guilty of having participated in the transaction, receiving a three year sentence for his part. The court found that by arranging the company to buy their sister out of the company the two financiers and the CEO of Milestone had misappropriated company funds. The court also found that the three had been guilty of massive accounting fraud in connection to these transactions.
Karl and Steingrímur Wernersson were among the most prominent “Corporate Vikings” during the pre-crash financial boom in Iceland. The core of the business empire of the Wernersson siblings was a chain of pharmacies, but like many other prominent financiers they expanded into finance in the pre-crash years. Their flagship investment company, Milestone, was among the most powerful of the many investment companies, holding, among other things, major shares in failed bank Glitnir, as well as a controlling stake in the failed investment bank Askar Capital.
Read more: 26 bankers already sentenced to a combined 74 years in prison
Three accountants with KPMG were also charged with accounting fraud in connection to the transactions. Two were found guilty, receiving a 9 month suspended sentence, while one was acquitted. All six had previously been acquitted by the District Court of Reykjavík.
The Supreme Court of Iceland has sentenced brothers Karl Wernersson and Steingrímur Wernersson to 3.5 and 2 years in prison, respectively, for breach of fiduciary duty local news site visir.is reports. In the two years leading up to the 2008 crash the brothers had arranged for Milestone, a company they controlled, to pay their sister 4.8 billion ISK (approximately 68 million USD/52 million EUR) for shares in the company.
Read more: Bankers Behind Bars: A guided walking tour through the collapse of Iceland's banking system in 2008
The former CEO of Milestone, Guðmundur Ólason was also found guilty of having participated in the transaction, receiving a three year sentence for his part. The court found that by arranging the company to buy their sister out of the company the two financiers and the CEO of Milestone had misappropriated company funds. The court also found that the three had been guilty of massive accounting fraud in connection to these transactions.
Karl and Steingrímur Wernersson were among the most prominent “Corporate Vikings” during the pre-crash financial boom in Iceland. The core of the business empire of the Wernersson siblings was a chain of pharmacies, but like many other prominent financiers they expanded into finance in the pre-crash years. Their flagship investment company, Milestone, was among the most powerful of the many investment companies, holding, among other things, major shares in failed bank Glitnir, as well as a controlling stake in the failed investment bank Askar Capital.
Read more: 26 bankers already sentenced to a combined 74 years in prison
Three accountants with KPMG were also charged with accounting fraud in connection to the transactions. Two were found guilty, receiving a 9 month suspended sentence, while one was acquitted. All six had previously been acquitted by the District Court of Reykjavík.
