White House senior adviser Jared Kushner delivers remarks on the Trump administration's approach to the Middle East region at the Saban Forum in Washington, US, December 3, 2017.. (photo credit: REUTERS/JAMES LAWLER DUGGAN)
NEW YORK - Deutsche Bank is reportedly investigating the finances of President Donald Trump's son-in-law and senior adviser, Jared Kushner, over irregular money transfers made by him, his company and business associates.
The Federal Financial Supervisory Authority for Germany (BaFin) is also said to be in possession of the Kushner documents and is expected to send them to US special prosecutor Robert Mueller, according to German publication Manager Magazin, who broke the story on Saturday.
Mueller is currently heading an investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential elections and has already made several arrests of individuals involved in the Trump campaign.
The bank reportedly received a subpoena from Mueller last year and has been cooperating with the investigation, according to The International Business Times.
The case places an uncomfortable spotlight over Deutsche Bank leadership, including chairman of the supervisory board Paul Achleitner, and the bank’s CEO John Cryan, who have prioritized stamping out suspicious activity within the company over the past several years.
While most media scrutiny has been focused on possible “collusion” allegations between the President and the Russian government, reports are beginning to shift towards possible illegal financial dealings involving Trump and his company.
Compounding the notion is the recent release of Michael Wolff’s salacious new tome Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House, which quotes former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon as openly worrying about the supposed financial irregularities connected with the Trump empire.
“You realize where this is going,” Bannon is quoted in the book. "This is all about money laundering.”
CNN reported on Wednesday that Bannon struck a deal with Mueller’s team, agreeing to cooperate fully with his inquiry by answering questions by US federal prosecutors instead of testifying in front of a grand jury.
Indictments against Trump’s former campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, along with his deputy Rick Gates, have already been handed down by the special prosecutor over money laundering allegations in October.