Natwest fraud trial: As witness evidence ends, prosecutor recaps charges

Summary

The former senior manager at NatWest, Jillian Balban, faces serious allegations of fraud and false accounting spanning from 2011 to 2017. Prosecutors accuse her of falsifying transactions to conceal a multimillion-pound gap in the bank's cash reserves. Balban vehemently denies the charges, stating it's impossible to recall rationale for entries from years ago. The trial delves into accusations of unauthorized entries, fund transfers between branches, and an alleged attempt to inflate the bank's books before Balban's redundancy. Prosecutors allege Balban cleared debts and covered a £600,000 shortfall, while she maintains her innocence, claiming proper accounting procedures. The trial culminates in closing arguments, where the truth behind the financial discrepancies will be determined.

Takeaways

• 😲 Jalter, a former senior manager at NatWest, is facing allegations of fraud and false accounting from 2011 to 2017.
• 💰 The allegations involve falsely accounting for £1.5 million and creating a £2 million gap in NatWest's cash reserves.
• 🗣️ Jalter denies the allegations, stating it's impossible to remember the rationale behind entries from many years ago.
• 📝 The prosecution accuses Jalter of falsely authorizing entries to show £1 million was paid into and out of a NatWest branch.
• 💱 Jalter claims she wouldn't have been involved in certain transactions due to her higher signing limit.
• 🏦 The prosecution alleges Jalter moved funds between branches to clear £240,000 worth of IOU slips.
• 🕵️‍♀️ The prosecution suggests Jalter was clearing her debts before leaving the bank on redundancy.
• 📈 Allegations include inflating the bank's books by £600,000 and using £711,000 in dividends to clear an alleged debt.
• ✍️ Jalter is accused of crediting checks to her own account instead of passing them to the bank.
• 💻 Jalter allegedly created a memo falsely explaining a £2 million shortfall as a software migration issue.

Q & A

Who is the former senior manager at NatWest facing allegations?

The former senior manager at NatWest facing allegations is Jalter (name mentioned in the transcript).

What are the allegations against Jalter?

Jalter is facing allegations of fraud and false accounting dating back from 2011 to 2017.

How much is Jalter accused of falsely accounting for?

Jalter is accused of falsely accounting for £1.5 million.

What does the crown allege regarding Jalter's actions?

The crown alleges that Jalter signed off on false transactions to dishonestly balance the cash reserve and kick forward a hole in an account, which allegedly grew to become a £2 million gap in NatWest's cash reserves.

What is Jalter's defense regarding the allegations?

Jalter stressed that it is impossible to remember the rationale behind entries from so many years ago, and she maintained throughout that she did not accumulate any IOUs or debit slips.

What other allegations did the crown make against Jalter?

The crown alleged that Jalter falsely authorized entries that purported to show £1 million had been paid into and then out of the NatWest Corral Road Branch cash reserve, and that she moved funds between branches to clear alleged £240,000 worth of IOU slips.

How did the crown allege Jalter tried to clear her alleged debts before leaving the bank?

The crown alleged that in the weeks before Jalter left the bank, she asked a cashier to record a purchase of funds as a sale, inflating the bank's books in an attempt to clear an alleged £600,000 worth of IOUs, and when that was unsuccessful, she used £711,000 worth of bank dividends from Jersey to clear her alleged debt.

What was Jalter's response to the allegations regarding clearing debts before leaving the bank?

Jalter told the prosecutor there were never any IOUs, and he was holding on to things being signed by her.

What was the allegation regarding checks credited to Jalter's account?

The crown alleged that Jalter credited checks to her own account in exchange for euros instead of passing these on to the bank.

How did Jalter respond to the allegation about creating a memo regarding the £2 million shortfall?

Jalter said the bank had chosen to write off the £2 million, but this did not mean it was not sat in a suspense account somewhere.