The Argentine Congress Has Created a Bicameral Commission for the Investigation of Banking and Financial Instruments

Under Law No. 27,094, legislated on December 17, 2014 and enacted on January 20, 2015, a Bicameral Commission for the Investigation of Banking and Financial Instruments (the “Bicameral Commission”) was established in the Argentine Congress with the aim of  investigating any scheme implemented to facilitate the opening of bank accounts abroad being perpetrated by Argentine economic agents, who manage these accounts and conceal their existence in order to promote tax evasion and the outflow of capital.

The Bicameral Commission shall identify those economic agents involved in this tax non-compliance and capital outflow operation, as well as the banking and/or financial institutions that have structured and/or facilitated such transactions. The research process will focus on tracing "possible systemic behavior within the banking and financial markets that operate in Argentina aimed at promoting capital outflow and tax evasion" and if necessary promote the relevant legislative changes to end such activities.

Such Law provides that in no case shall any banking, tax, stock exchange or professional secrecy, nor any legal or contract confidentiality commitment be enforceable against the Bicameral Commission when dealing with "reports, testimonies, documents or any records of the matter under investigation”. The Bicameral Commission has the right to go to court to ensure its access to such information.

The Bicameral Commission shall be made up of five (5) representatives (diputados) and five (5) senators (senadores) appointed by the presidents of the House of Representatives and the Senate, respectively and chaired by a member of the commission elected by the other members.

The Bicameral Commission shall define a schedule of hearings with those banking and/or financial institutions involved in these operations and the bank account holders that have been reported by the Argentine Tax Authority (AFIP) to the Budget and Treasury Commissions of the House of Representatives and Senate of Argentina. Additionally, hearings will be held with (i) regulatory bodies of banking, financial, foreign exchange and capital markets; (ii) entities and agents authorized to operate in these markets; and (iii) experts and specialists engaged and/or who have worked in such market.

The Bicameral Commission shall also publish a full report of its work.

Finally, once the objectives of the Bicameral Commission have been fulfilled, it will be dissolved and submit all the information it has collected to the Argentine Executive Branch. If it discovers the any crimes before it is dissolved, the Commission shall make the appropriate filing and claims.