Corruption investigations against former EIB President Werner Hoyer

The former President of the European Investment Bank (EIB), Werner Hoyer, is currently being investigated by the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO), his lawyer confirmed to the German Press Agency on Tuesday.

The EPPO is investigating corruption, abuse of influence and “embezzlement of EU funds,” according to a statement published on Monday.

The focus of the investigation is a severance payment for a former EIB employee that Hoyer signed, according to Hoyer’s lawyer Nikolaos Gazeas.

As usual, the Director General for Human Resources and the Secretary General of the EIB discussed a termination agreement with an employee, said Gazeas.

Hoyer was then presented with a memorandum requiring him to terminate his employment with the EIB and pay severance pay at the negotiated level, Gazeas said. Hoyer agreed to the decision.

Gazeas added that the legal requirements for the EPPO to initiate a criminal investigation are very low and that it is therefore not uncommon for the signatory of a contract to become involved in an investigation.

The EIB agreed to lift the immunity of Hoyer and another former employee of the bank based in Luxembourg. Hoyer had expressly requested this in order to clarify the allegations.

The allegations are “completely absurd and unfounded,” said Hoyer. “I now expect a comprehensive clarification and ask the EIB to cooperate fully with the EPPO.”

Hoyer, 72, headed the EIB from 2012 until the end of 2023.