Liechtensteinische Landesbank has announced the start of legal proceedings in the German city of Rostock against four defendants accused of blackmailing the bank. LLB was allegedly blackmailed over a long period with threats being made that its internal bank vouchers would be disclosed to third parties: estimates of payments made range as high as €9 million ($14 million). The internal bank vouchers, which were stolen by a former employee of the LLB, the bank says, relate to a “small proportion” of German bank clients having registered accounts. LLB admitted in February 2008 it had been the target of extortion since 2003. The Principality of Liechtenstein holds the majority of the company's share capital. This problem comes on top of another case where files stolen from another Liechtenstein bank, LGT, were sold to the tax authorities of other EU states, including Germany, leading to tax evasion investigations in those countries.