Fuentes Informadas published transcripts of a conversation between former National Police Commissioner and key figure in Operation Catalonia, José Manuel Villarejo, and a journalist. In this conversation, Villarejo revealed that he was instructed by a government official to halt an investigation into Andbank and instead redirect scrutiny toward BPA. The reason? To avoid “bothering a senior State personality,” referring to the former King of Spain, who reportedly held accounts at Andbank.

Senior figures in the Andorran government enabled the downfall of the Private Bank of Andorra (BPA) by implicating it in illicit activities while protecting other national banks engaged in similar practices. To achieve this, they provided misleading and damaging information about BPA to the United States.

On August 26, 2014, following a request from the US embassy in Spain, the American government sent a communication to the Andorran authorities. This message highlighted concerns about Andorra’s inadequate regulations on cash deposits and noted that certain individuals appeared to be using Andorra as a hub for concealing illicit funds. A prior crackdown in November 2013 by authorities in the Netherlands and Spain had dismantled a money laundering network that had funneled €16 million in drug trafficking proceeds into Andorran bank accounts. However, the US communication did not single out any particular bank.

BPA’s alleged connection to money laundering first appeared in an Andorran Police Report concerning this drug trafficking network. However, the report also mentioned other major Andorran banks. In reality, most of the €16 million were deposited in Credit Andorra, one of the country’s most prominent banks. At the time of BPA’s closure, Andorra’s Minister of Finance, Jordi Cinca, had a history with Credit Andorra, where he had served as a director of Commercial Banking and a member of the executive committee before assuming his ministerial role. This raises strong suspicions that Cinca deliberately diverted attention away from Credit Andorra to shield it from scrutiny.

Andbank, another major Andorran financial institution, was formed through the merger of Banc Agricol and Banca Reig, the latter owned by the Reig family. Notably, Oscar Ribas Reig, a former President of Andorra, was closely linked to the bank, reinforcing the notion of deep connections between Andbank and the Andorran government. Further evidence of this relationship emerged when Villarejo released an audio recording detailing how Ignacio Cosidó, the former Director General of the Spanish Police, ordered him to abandon an investigation into Andbank to protect a high-ranking state figure. Instead, Villarejo was directed to manipulate findings against BPA, exposing the deliberate efforts by key officials to frame BPA while safeguarding other banks.

This article is adapted from a piece originally published by Fuentes Informadas on August 3, 2022.