Munich court paves way for Wirecard trial

MUNICH (Reuters) – A Munich district court said it had admitted charges against former Wirecard executives, paving way for a trial into Germany’s biggest post-war fraud scandal at the now-defunct company.

Former Chief Executive Markus Braun and two other former managers will face trial, the court said in a statement on Wednesday.

The formerly DAX-listed payment company filed for insolvency in June 2020, owing creditors almost $4 billion, after disclosing a 1.9 billion euro ($1.88 billion) hole in its accounts that its auditor EY said was the result of a sophisticated global fraud.

Prosecutors accuse Braun, and the other two executives of balance sheet falsification, market manipulation, embezzlement in several cases and commercial fraud.

Braun, who has been in custody since July 2020, rejects the allegations.

Handelsblatt business daily, which first reported the step, cited sources as saying they expected the trial to start early next year. The court gave no date.

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(Reporting by Alexander Huebner; Writing by Rachel More; Editing by Paul Carrel, Kirsti Knolle)