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Slovakia has revived a corruption probe into its central bank governor Peter Kažimír, after a judge ruled that reforms introduced by his old political ally Prime Minister Robert Fico did not exempt the banker from prosecution.
Friday’s ruling contradicts a November decision that was expected to shield the banker from action by prosecutors under a shortened statute of limitations introduced in the prime minister’s controversial criminal code overhaul.
Kažimír is suspected of acting as an intermediary in a bribe while finance minister in a previous Fico administration.
The latest round in Kažimír’s legal battle comes as his first term expires at the start of June, with Slovak lawmakers feuding over whether he should serve another term.
The central bank governor was appointed in 2019, putting him on the European Central Bank’s main interest rate-setting body.
Kažimír has long been appealing against the case that he already called “a judicial farce” last year, while denying any wrongdoing.
Friday’s decision was made by a judge from a special court handling his bribery case, while the November decision by the Supreme Court was a guideline for judges to apply Fico’s new statute, rather than a final ruling about Kažimír.
Vladimír Vaňo, the Bratislava-based chief economist of think-tank Globsec, said it could impact ECB monetary policy if the central bank governor is replaced. Kažimír “has repeatedly been considered part of the more hawkish wing of the governing council [of the ECB],” Vaňo said.
Kažimír’s lawyer said his client denied wrongdoing and argued the case had already been barred by statute. “The court’s procedure is unlawful and incorrect, my client is innocent,” Ondrej Mularčík told the FT.
The Slovak central bank said it could not comment while its governor was on a trip to Washington this week. The ECB declined to comment.
Fico’s revised criminal code was criticised by the Slovak opposition and EU officials for being part of his attempt to weaken the rule of law. The new code lowered penalties for theft and corruption as well as cutting the time period allowed to bring prosecutions.
Fico separately scrapped a special prosecutor’s office and a national crime agency that investigated corruption and other serious crimes last year.
Judge Milan Cisarik said Fico’s new statute of limitations could not apply to a case of alleged misuse of EU funds, which could fall under the jurisdiction of the EU public prosecutor’s office. Cisarik set a new hearing for May 23.
Kažimír was previously found guilty for his involvement in the bribery case and issued with a €100,000 fine two years ago, which prompted both the prime minister and president at the time to urge him to quit as governor. But Kažimír started a lengthy appeal process and stayed on at the central bank when Fico returned to office in 2023.
Should the case conclude with Kažimír’s conviction and sentencing, “it would be a big loss for the current government and a huge win for our rule of law”, said Renáta Bláhová, a finance and tax adviser at BMB Partners in Bratislava.
Kažimír’s public image has been further dented by a separate investigation into the circumstances of his partner, Katarína Korecká, purchasing a villa in southern France.
Local media reported that the property was acquired through a loan from an oligarch and offshore accounts in Cyprus.
Slovak police opened a probe after that report, but no charges have been filed in connection with this transaction. Korecká has denied wrongdoing, while refusing to detail how she paid for the villa.
Additional reporting by Olaf Storbeck in Frankfurt
https://www.ft.com/content/66b0c4ef-d8b6-438e-a279-6f378472f9c7
