HNB COUNCIL: HNB ACTED IN LINE WITH LAW IN RIJECKA BANKA CASE

ZAGREB, April 11 (Hina) - The expert services of the Croatian National Bank (HNB) that investigated the case of Rijecka Banka have acted in line with the law, relevant regulations and supervision standards, the HNB Council said on Thursday after considering the issue of responsibility in the Rijecka Banka scandal. #L# As in previous cases, the HNB expert services have acted in line with the law, relevant regulations and supervision standards, the HNB Council said in a statement released after today's session. It is completely unreasonable to expect from the central bank and its expert services to assume responsibility for what is exclusively the responsibility of a bank's management and its internal control or an external auditor. This is why the issue of responsibility of the supervisor, which is within the scope of responsibilities of the central bank, was never mentioned in similar foreign currency fraud cases in other countries, the Council said. The HNB Council concluded that all available measures should be taken to complete, as soon as possible, the investigation into the scandal and circumstances which led to it, as well as to establish responsibility for the scandal, punish the perpetrators, and inform the public about the findings. The highest organs and expert services of the central bank will contribute to that in any way they can, reads the statement. (hina) sb rml,