Wirecard scandal

The Wirecard scandal (German: Wirecard-Skandal) was a series of corrupt business practices and fraudulent financial reporting that led to the insolvency of Wirecard, a payment processor and financial services provider, headquartered in Munich, Germany. The company was part of the DAX index. They offered customers electronic payment transaction and risk management services, as well as the issuance and processing of physical cards. The subsidiary, Wirecard Bank AG, held a banking license and had contracts with multiple international financial services companies.

Allegations of accounting malpractices have trailed the company since the early days of its incorporation, reaching a peak in 2019 after the Financial Times published a series of investigations along with whistleblower complaints and internal documents. On 25 June 2020, Wirecard filed for insolvency after revealing that €1.9 billion was "missing",^[2][3] and the termination and arrest of its CEO Markus Braun.^[4] Questions have been raised about regulatory failure on the part of Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin), Germany's top financial watchdog, and possible malpractice of Wirecard's long time auditor Ernst & Young.