A central figure in the epic 'cum-ex' tax fraud scheme was convicted in June after cooperating with prosecutors.

At the height of the scheme, Dr Kai-Uwe Steck advised Investec and others on how to claim fraudulent tax refunds from European governments. Investec has acknowledged what it calls the 'historical involvement' of its employees, but denies wrongdoing.

A central figure in the epic 'cum-ex' tax fraud scheme was convicted in June after cooperating with prosecutors. At the height of the scheme, Dr Kai-Uwe Steck advised Investec and others on how to claim fraudulent tax refunds from European governments. Investec has acknowledged what it calls the 'historical involvement' of its employees, but denies wrongdoing.

The conviction of German lawyer and financial engineer Dr Kai-Uwe Steck, a key player in Europe's largest tax fraud scheme, may intensify scrutiny of Investec Bank's allegedly major role in financing and profiting off fraudulently procured tax refunds worth millions of euros.

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AmaBhungane has reported extensively on the "cum-ex" scam, which drew in a number of banks and other financial service providers around the world.

The basic mechanism of the scam was to claim tax refunds on dividend tax that was never paid. This required large amounts of upfront funding, which Investec provided to some key fraudsters.

Read more about the complex mechanics of the scheme here.

On 3 June, the Bonn Regional Court sentenced Steck to one year and 10 months in prison, suspended for three years. He was convicted on five counts of tax evasion related to cum-ex transactions.

Steck played...