Latvia's Banking System Reeling After Its Third-Largest Bank Failed

A security guard speaks on her mobile phone at the head office of the ABLV Bank in Riga, Latvia February 18, 2018. REUTERS/Ints Kalnins/File Photo

Reuters: Latvia calls emergency meeting after third-largest bank fails

RIGA (Reuters) - Latvian authorities will gather for an emergency meeting on Monday following the failure of the country’s third-largest bank, the Prime minister said on Saturday, as the country kept watch for any fallout on other banks.

ABLV Bank is failing or likely to fail and will be wound up as saving it is not in the public interest, the European Union’s Single Resolution Board and the European Central Bank (ECB) said separately on Saturday.

Accused by U.S. authorities of large-scale money laundering, ABLV scrambled this week to come up with a survival plan, but failed as customers fled and management could not come up with sufficient cash, despite offers of emergency central bank liquidity.

Latvia’s Finance Minister Dana Reizniece-Ozola said the situation in other banks was stable and that the level of deposits at around 20 billion euros ($25 billion) had not changed significantly.

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Update #1: Europe to Wind Down Latvian Bank Targeted by U.S. Over Sanctions (Bloomberg)
Update #2: European authorities move to liquidate Latvian lender after US accusations (The National)

WNU Editor: The Latvian bank that has failed .... ABLV Bank .... was accused of laundering money for North Korea. This bank failure falls on the heels of another crisis where Latvia's central banker has been accused of accepting bribes .... Latvian minister urges central bank chief to quit over graft probe (Times of Malta).