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German prosecutors have closed their legal investigation into former DWS chief government Asoka Wöhrmann over greenwashing allegations, opting to not press fees within the wake of fines for Deutsche Financial institution’s asset administration arm within the US and Germany.
Frankfurt’s public prosecutor stated that Wöhrmann’s lack of earlier convictions and the truth that he left DWS “instantly after the greenwashing allegations grew to become identified” have been key components within the determination.
“Moreover, the accused is not lively within the capital markets sector,” they added. Wöhrmann now leads Patrizia, a listed German actual property group.
The investigation into Wöhrmann adopted a whistleblower criticism in 2021 by Desiree Fixler, DWS’s former head of sustainability, who claimed the group misrepresented the dimensions of its sustainable investments. The case triggered parallel probes in each Germany and the US.
In April, German prosecutors fined DWS €25mn, citing deceptive advertising and marketing and slogans that didn’t mirror precise practices — reminiscent of describing environmental, social and governance (ESG) initiatives as “a part of our DNA” and portraying the corporate as a market “chief”. Germany’s monetary regulator BaFin additionally launched a evaluate of the group’s ESG disclosures.
DWS had already agreed in 2023 to pay $19mn to settle associated fees with the US Securities and Change Fee, which at the moment was the watchdog’s highest-ever penalty associated to ESG standards towards an funding adviser.
Of their assertion, prosecutors famous that Wöhrmann had pursued DWS’s ESG transformation “with nice dedication” however confronted “inside resistance”. The shortcomings in implementation “can’t be attributed to him alone”, they stated.
Wöhrmann left DWS in 2022 with a €13.7mn payout, together with €8.15mn in severance. On the time, the corporate stated the package deal remained topic to potential clawback provisions. In its newest annual report, DWS disclosed that the vesting of long-term bonuses for a “former member of the Government Board” from 2022 had been suspended pending evaluate.
Wöhrmann was the one DWS worker beneath legal investigation, and there aren’t any different legal proceedings over greenwashing ongoing towards DWS.
DWS declined to touch upon the standing of the evaluate, however stated: “As a normal rule, we adjust to all audit and evaluate obligations.”
Patrizia stated it remained “completely satisfied” of Wöhrmann’s “values, integrity and credibility”, citing the outcomes of inside and exterior investigations.
