An arrest order in the amount of 35 million euros was lifted by the Munich I Regional Court. However, another one is pending. In addition, Markus Braun cannot access the money.

Former Wirecard boss Markus Braun has achieved a small partial success in the fight for his fortune. One of two multimillion-dollar arrest warrants that the insolvency administrator had obtained was lifted by the Munich I Regional Court on Thursday.

With a sum of 35 million euros, however, this is the smaller of the two arrest orders. Another for a sum of 140 million was confirmed by the court.

This is how the 140 million euros are made up

With regard to the confirmed arrest warrant, the court stated that insolvency administrator Michael Jaffé had made it credible that “Dr. Braun violated his duties as a member of the Wirecard AG Management Board”. On the one hand, this concerns the disbursement of a loan of 100 million euros to a company founded in Singapore without collateral and despite arrears on a previous loan. On the other hand, it is about the subscription of two bonds for 100 million euros. Of the total of 200 million, only 60 million went back to Wirecard, resulting in a total of 140 million euros.

The lifted arrest warrant for 35 million euros was about money that ex-sales director Jan Marsalek is said to have siphoned off from the group via a gyro transfer to pay off a loan from Braun. Braun argues that he knew nothing about it. The court now found that it had not been made sufficiently credible that Braun was in the picture.

Braun without access to the money

The decisions do not have too much practical significance for Braun. The Munich public prosecutor’s office has also had the private assets of the manager suspected of fraud arrested. In fact, Braun has no access to the 35 million.

The payment processor Wirecard collapsed in 2020 after admitting sham bookings of 1.9 billion euros. Former CEO Markus Braun has been in custody for around two years.