Taiwan prosecutors detain former Mega Financial chief in latest probe

Mega Financial Holding Co

05/10/2016 04:05

TAIPEI, Oct 5 (Reuters) - Taiwan prosecutors said on 
Wednesday they have detained the ex-chairman of Mega Financial 
Holding  2886.TW  and a key former executive of the company, 
following a government probe into the state-run group's 
violation of U.S. banking regulations. 
    Prosecutors have taken former Mega chairman McKinney Tsai 
and former chief secretary Wang Chi-pang into custody as 
suspects of serious crimes, in part because they could pose "a 
risk of flight and destroying evidence" related to violations at 
the bank's New York branch, said Chang Chieh-chin, deputy chief 
prosecutor of the Taipei District Prosecutors Office. 
    Tsai and Wang could be detained for up to two months, Chang 
said. Tsai stepped down as chairman in March. 
    Current finance minister Sheu Yu-jer and ex-finance minister 
Chang Sheng-ford will also be investigated by Taiwan's Control 
Yuan, an investigatory agency that monitors government, the 
cabinet said in a statement late on Monday. 
    The government ordered a probe this week to find out whether 
the finance minister and other officials were responsible for 
inadequate oversight in a case that led to a $180 million fine 
to the bank's New York branch by U.S. authorities. The fine 
related to violations of rules including lax attention to risk 
exposure in Panama.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL3N1CA0AX  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL3N1B0416 
    The agency is investigating whether there was "insufficient 
oversight" in a case that Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-wen has 
said damaged the island's reputation and created public mistrust 
about supervision of the financial sector.     
 
 (Reporting by Faith Hung and Jeanny Kao; Editing by Sam Holmes) 
 ((faith.hung@thomsonreuters.com; 8862 2500 4893; Reuters 
Messaging: faith.hung.thomsonreuters.com@thomsonreuters.net)) 
 
Keywords: TAIWAN MEGAFINANCIAL/