Mozambique can sue Privinvest in London ‘tuna bonds’ case, UK court rules

LONDON (Reuters) – Mozambique can sue shipbuilder Privinvest in Britain for alleged bribery linked to the $2 billion “tuna bonuses” scandal, the U.K.’s Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday. weeks before a blockbuster trial begins at London’s High Court. .

Mozambique has sued Privinvest, its owner Iskandar Safa, swiss credit and others about three loans obtained in 2013 and 2014, apparently to develop its fishing industry. The African country alleges the deals were corrupt and left it exposed to potential liability of around $2 billion.

In the Supreme Court case, Privinvest argued that the dispute should be heard in a secret arbitration procedure. But senior judges unanimously allowed the case to be heard in a lengthy public trial at the High Court, set to begin on October 3.

The ruling validates Mozambique’s decision to bring proceedings before the High Court, London law firm Peters & Peters said. “The republic hopes to prove its arguments against Privinvest and Mr. Safa at trial…” he added.

Privinvest, which has offices in Lebanon and Abu Dhabi, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Next month’s trial will hear allegations from Mozambique that Privinvest and Safa paid more than $130 million in bribes to corrupt officials and Credit Suisse staff.

Privinvest denies any wrongdoing and says it only made payments, investments or contributions to legitimate political campaigns.

The African nation also alleges that Credit Suisse, which was bought by peer UBS in June, ignored red flags that allowed its bankers to close corrupt deals.

Credit Suisse, which is defending itself in the case, has claimed that three former bankers, who have already pleaded guilty in the United States, concealed their misconduct.

The bank agreed to pay about $475 million to British and U.S. authorities in 2021 to resolve bribery and fraud charges and has pledged to forgive $200 million of Mozambique’s debt.

The tuna bond or “hidden debt” case dates back to three deals between Mozambican state-owned companies and Privinvest, financed in part by loans and bonds from Credit Suisse and backed by undisclosed guarantees from the Mozambican government.

Mozambique, one of the world’s poorest countries, wants to revoke a sovereign guarantee on a loan it alleges was obtained corruptly and seek compensation for other alleged irregularities.

The London trials have been mired in difficulties as Mozambique’s failure to disclose key documents has threatened to derail the litigation.

Privinvest and Safa also tried, unsuccessfully, to involve Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi in the case. The Superior Court ruled this month that Nyusi has state immunity.

Helen Taylor, legal researcher at lobby group Spotlight on Corruption, said the Supreme Court ruling represented a “huge victory” for Mozambique.

“Open justice is absolutely essential in this case given the overwhelming public interest in ensuring there is proper scrutiny of a corruption scandal that has left the people of Mozambique on the hook for billions of dollars,” he said.

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