The public prosecution department has halted its investigation into a number of senior ING and ABN Amro staff in connection with their failure to prevent large scale money laundering at the banks several years ago.

Four years after starting the investigations about the failings, the department said it had not found enough evidence for a criminal prosecution.

The probe started following a court case brought by activist Pieter Lakeman, who accused the bank’s senior staff, including ING chief executive Ralph Hamers of being too lax in dealing with the risks of money laundering and financing terrorism.

ING paid €775 million in 2018 in an out of court settlement, a deal which caused an outcry because the bank’s leadership got off scot free.

ABN Amro reached a deal in 2021 and agreed to pay €480 million out of court. Four bank executives were part of the criminal probe, including former chief executives Kees van Dijkhuizen and Gerrit Zalm.

Hamers’ lawyer Daan Doorenbos told the Financieele Dagblad the decision to stop the investigation was a logical one. “If there was nothing, you find nothing,” he said.