Former Prime Minister and Maltese MEP Alfred Sant told France 24 that the European Commission felt it should investigate small banks operating in small EU states whilst closings its eyes on money laundering activities by the big whales in Europe.

European Commissioner Vera Yourova never mentions big fish like Deutsche Bank, Germany’s largest bank, which last year was fined nearly €620 million for allowing money laundering, but then puts under the spotlight small banks from small EU member states like Malta, Sant said.

“Doesn’t it sound curious that Yourova speaks about a small bank in a small country and does not speak about Deutsche Bank? Pilatus Bank was a small investment bank which was caught by US Sanctions. It was a small fish when compared to Danske Bank, the biggest bank in Denmark. The big fish, the big whales in Sweden, France and Germany have not been mentioned by Commissioner Yourova.” said Alfred Sant when asked by Catherine Nicholson whether he thinks Malta is being victimised being a small EU state on her TV Programme Talking Europe.

The Maltese MEP said that investment by citizenship schemes in Malta and Cyprus are legitimate and more transparent than those applied in countries like Austria, France and Germany.

“The granting of citizenship in these countries is done underhandedly with agreements with security services, the Ministry of Finance or the Presidents or Prime Ministers of these countries. This is definitely not a transparent way of granting citizenship,” remarked the Maltese MEP.