Compass Finance trial in Geneva: up to 36 months sought for 16 million francs in kickbacks
The Geneva public prosecutor's office has sought 36 months in prison with partial suspension against four former financiers accused of dividing 16 million francs in kickbacks among themselves.
Four former Geneva financiers face severe sentences at the Correctional Court
The public prosecutor's office requested on Wednesday sentences of 36 months in prison with partial suspension against the four defendants in the Compass Finance trial, before the Geneva Correctional Court, according to Le Temps.
Prosecutor Sophie Varga Lang sought the heaviest custodial sentence — 18 months — against the former trader of the defunct asset management company, absent from the hearing but identified as the central figure in the case. The former director and founder of Compass Finance each face a custodial sentence of 12 months, while the director of the trader's first employer faces 6 months.
According to the prosecutor, the accused betrayed their client's trust and acted out of financial gain. Each is said to have received between 1.6 and 6.6 million francs, channelled through a Panamanian company in order to reduce the tax burden.
The four former finance professionals are being prosecuted for having multiplied, concealed and distributed amongst themselves 16 million francs in kickbacks, to the detriment of a major client, in the early 2010s. This same client had also instructed the defendants to assemble an art collection during the same period; they allegedly overcharged him for works by Picasso, Bacon and Monet for a total of half a billion francs. This second aspect resulted in a conviction pronounced in December 2025, against which they have appealed.
Source: Le Temps