(Reuters) - Cyprus's securities regulator on Friday imposed a 650,000 euro ($730,795.00) fine on Germany's Commerzbank for transactions ordered by a now defunct local bank whose demise featured in a financial crisis which roiled the country in 2013. The Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) said the administrative fine was imposed for the role Commerzbank played in transactions carried out by Laiki, also known as Cyprus Popular Bank, in 2011, subsequent to a cross-border merger with Greece's Marfin-Egnatia Bank. Commerzbank declined to comment. In a separate development, Chief Executive Martin Zielke stepped down on Friday to open the way for a fresh start for the German lender, which has been under pressure from some investors over its poor financial performance. The eight-year probe in Cyprus, called for by Cypriot left-wing AKEL lawmaker Irene Charalambides, focussed on whether the Cypriot deals may have broken laws prohibiting a company from purchasing its own stock.

Source: International New York Times July 03, 2020 19:52 UTC