The Swiss bank, Julius Baer, whose former Panama boss is awaiting sentencing after pleading guilty in Miami to money laundering is closing its offices in the country and will concentrate on other larger markets in the region such as Brazil.

The statement of the financial institution was made after Matthias Krull, pleaded guilty in a case of diversion of $1.2 BILLION from the Venezuelan state-owned oil company PDVSA.

The case resulted in ended in an international investigation against the bank that ultimately resulted in Krull's sentence. The bank has not been charged for the crime."

The bank undertook a review of its business in the region, which resulted in the decision to close its operations in Panama and Peru. It told  the Financial Times that will continue to serve its clients and will offer its 'key employees' a transfer to one of its branches, located in Chile or the Bahamas."