The Bucharest Court yesterday acquitted the Chairman of the Board of Banca Transilvania, Horia Ciorcila and all the other defendants in a case of capital market rigging and trading the bank’s shares on the bourse, which resulted in a loss of EUR 13.5 M, Mediafax reports. Magistrates ruled that DIICOT (the Department for the Investigation of Organised Crime and Terrorism) must change the charges brought in this case against all defendants. According to DIICOT, Horia Ciorcila had access to privileged information about the intent of Bank of Cyprus to purchase a significant stake in Banca Transilvania. Using the information to his own benefit, the defendant allegedly sold 8,918,671 TLV shares, worth a total RON 21,404,762.52 to Bank of Cyprus, in two separate transactions intermediated by Cyprus-based company Dodworth Limited, which he controls. The other defendants are Claudiu Eugen Iuliu Silaghi, former deputy Chairman of the Board of Banca Transilvania, Georgios Christofourou, CEO of Bank of Cyprus – Public Company Limited – the Romanian Branch, Anastasios Isaakidis – an employee of Bank of Cyprus – Public Company Limited – the Romanian Branch, Mirela Silaghi and Sergiu Dan Dascal. DIICOT Cluj said it would appeal the decision of Bucharest Court.
