The defense college of former shareholders of the New Bank of Mauritania (NBM) have published clarifications and proposals following the communiqués of the Central Bank and its legal counsel which explicitly refers to certain acts and events to justify the arrest of former shareholders.

According to the lawyers, the Memorandum of Understanding of 20 July 2019 between the shareholders of the NBM and the BCM should serve as the basis for the complaint filed on 14 June 2019 by the BCM against the defendants, closed by the Memorandum of Understanding of 20 July 2019 and then suddenly resurrected in March 2021.
The Memorandum of Understanding recalls that in view of the difficulties of the NBM as noted by the inspectors and which appear in its own annexes, the Central Bank had the choice between placing the NBM under provisional administration, its outright liquidation or its reorganization in concert with the shareholders. In the Protocol, the Central Bank chooses the option most in line with the truth of the facts: the recovery of the bank, whose difficulties were very relative and certainly unrelated to any economic crime whatsoever.
" The criminal action against the shareholders therefore fell by itself, especially since the Parties to the agreement had expressly referred to the Commercial Court any dispute that would arise in the context of its implementation, that is to say, any dispute that would concern the commitments of the shareholders to put the bank back in a normal situation in financial matters as well as those of the Central Bank to accompany them throughout the recovery process," reads the press release.
In addition, the College of Lawyers of former shareholders referred to the contract for the sale of NBM to westbridge ; porting companies and so-called shell companies.