Olaf Scholz ordered to explain himself in investigation of “QMX files”.

A risky hearing: Olaf Scholz will spend Friday “on the grill of the parliamentary commission of inquiry into the scandal”cumx files“, a tax fraud on dividends that alienates the German chancellor.

The Social Democratic leader will be heard from 12:00 GMT by the Hamburg Parliament’s Commission of Inquiry into the complex fraud that surfaced in 2017.

The CumEx scam relates to a simplified system of tax optimization set up by banks and allows foreign investors to reduce their taxes on dividends.

tax evasion case

Dozens of people, including bankers, businessmen, lawyers and financial advisors, have been indicted in Germany. A total of ten countries are concerned.

Among the delinquent banks is Warburg in Hamburg, which should have reimbursed 47 million euros to the German port city, but was waived by the municipality in 2016. The bank eventually had to pay millions of euros in reimbursement under pressure from the government. of Angela Merkel.

Investigators are trying to find out whether political leaders – and among them the city’s then-mayor, Olaf Scholz – pressured municipal tax officials to stop collecting these taxes.

i can’t tell you anything about it

,i can’t tell you anything about it“The government spokesman, Stefan Hebstreit, got in touch on Wednesday, assuring that Olaf Scholz”Will answerFor all questions of the Committee.

The decision to waive off the reimbursement of dues by Warburg Bank was reportedly taken soon after talks between Olaf Scholz and the then head of the bank, Christian Olerius. Olaf Scholz, however, denies putting pressure on the tax authorities in the city of Hamburg, which he led between 2011 and 2018.

But new elements that have emerged in recent days undermine the denial of Angela Merkel’s successor.