The one-time Governor of the Bank of Finland, Erkki Liikanen, was the victim of an alleged phishing incident last year, according to a report by commercial broadcaster MTV.
Liikanen lost an estimated 40,000 euros as a result of the scam, MTV said, which was reportedly a case of so-called "safe account" fraud.
In such cases, scammers contact victims under the guise of a trusted entity, informing them that their money is in danger and must be transferred to a separate account for supposed safekeeping. The fraudster then provides the victim with their own account details.
According to MTV, the incident occurred in April 2024 and affected Liikainen's account at Danske Bank.
Police confirmed to MTV that an incident from last April is currently being investigated as aggravated fraud, but did not confirm to the broadcaster that the victim was Liikanen.
Liikanen, who is now in his mid-70s, served as Governor of the Bank of Finland from 2004 to 2018, when he was succeeded by former EU Commissioner Olli Rehn. He was also Finland's finance minister from 1987 to 1990.
Finnish police regularly issue warnings about the dangers posed by financial scams and phishing attempts.
