A Dutch Court ordered Microsoft Corporation to allow bankruptcy trustees appointed to the Russia-linked Amsterdam Trade Bank to access its data or face damages, Bloomberg reports.
Netherlands declared ATB, a lender linked to Russia’s Alfa Group, bankrupt after U.S. and U.K. sanctions paralyzed its payment systems.
ATB had 23,000 private account holders and 6,000 customers in Germany.
ATB, in which sanctioned billionaire Mikhail Fridman held an interest via Alfa Group, had over €1.2 billion in assets, according to a 2020 report.
ATB lost access to email boxes containing critical information for trustees to investigate the causes of the bankruptcy.
ATB also lost access to documents, excel files, internal committee reports, and minutes from management board meetings.
Microsoft is vulnerable to daily penalties of €10 million ($10.5 million), with a maximum penalty of €100 million.
The trustees will look to liquidate the bank’s assets, followed by investigating the causes of the bankruptcy.
The central bank said it would pay eligible ATB account holders a maximum of €0.1 million per person.
Friends Read Free