FRANKFURT (Reuters) – German lender M.M. Warburg on Tuesday said its partners would provide financial backing to settle any claims related to the so-called “cum-ex” trading scheme, explaining that authorities are probing potential claims up to 280 million euros.

Prosecutors in Germany are investigating whether Warburg helped to mislead tax authorities into thinking a stock had multiple owners who were each owed a dividend and a tax credit, by trading shares rapidly around banks, investors and hedge funds. [nL5N26G2U4]

Germany estimates such trades cost it more than 5 billion euros in illicit tax rebates, while many of the participants say they were not aware it was legally questionable at the time.

Warburg on Tuesday said it had not intended to engage in or enable illegal share trades or to make inappropriate tax rebate

claims and has offered to refund proceeds which tax authorities could find to have been inappropriate.

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