State-funded startup financier Business Finland (BF) said it suspects one of its former US-based employees of financial misconduct. The agency said it has now raised a civil suit in the US to recoup any misused funds.
"The employee used doctored bank statements to mislead Finpro," Marianne Asikainen, a senior director at BF said in a statement.
Business Finland said it believed the offences occurred within a Finpro subsidiary prior to the establishment of Business Finland, which merged tech and innovation funding agencies Finpro and Tekes in early 2018.
The accounting irregularities may, however, still prove to be legitimate expenses, BF said in a statement.
Asikainen said the case has prompted BF to re-evaluate its internal financial monitoring processes.