JPMorgan and HSBC Processed Payments for Wagner Group-Linked Companies in Africa, Reports FT

According to Financial Times, two of the world's largest banks, American JPMorgan Chase and British HSBC, processed payments for companies in Africa that were controlled by the now-deceased founder of the Wagner Group , Yevgeny Prigozhin.

The publication is citing leaked documents obtained by the Center for Advanced Defense Studies (C4ADS).

According to these documents, in 2017, the Sudanese mining company Meroe Gold, which acted as a front for the Wagner Group, sent a payment from a local bank account through JPMorgan Chase, acting as an intermediary bank in New York, to a Chinese supplier of industrial equipment.

Another record from the same year shows that Meroe Gold transferred payment to a Chinese company for diesel generators and spare parts via Hang Seng Bank, part of the HSBC group.

There is no evidence to suggest that the banks were aware they were facilitating transactions for Wagner Group front companies.

At the time of the payments, Meroe Gold was not under US sanctions, although Prigozhin had been sanctioned since 2016. In 2018, Meroe Gold was sanctioned by the US for being "owned or controlled by Prigozhin" and assisting him in "exploiting Sudan's natural resources for personal gain."

HSBC declined to comment on the specific transactions in Sudan, but emphasized its "deep commitment to fighting financial crimes and maintaining the integrity of the global financial system."

JPMorgan stated that "After reviewing the limited information provided to us, we found no records matching these transactions."