The Serious Fraud Office has laid 21 charges against five people involved with failed lender South Canterbury Finance, following a 14-month investigation into the company's transactions.
The charges were laid in Timaru District Court on Wednesday.
The SFO won't name the five individuals, but chief executive Adam Feeley says the charges include theft by a person in a special relationship, obtaining by deception, false statements by the promoter of a company, and false accounting.
The charges carry maximum penalties of between seven and 10 years imprisonment.
The allegedly fraudulent transactions were estimated to total $1.7 billion, including $1.58 billion from entering the Crown retail deposits guarantee scheme.
Mr Feeley says the investigation was one of the most resource-intensive and time-consuming in recent history, and the value of the alleged fraud "exceeds anything in the history of white-collar crime in New Zealand".
The SFO has not investigated all of South Canterbury's transactions, due to the volume the company was involved with, but it may investigate other matters in future, Mr Feeley says.
Financial Markets Authority chief executive Sean Hughes says civil proceedings may be taken in order to recuperate some of the money paid out to South Canterbury investors under the retail deposits scheme.
South Canterbury was placed into receivership in August 2010 owing approximately $1.8 billion.
The company's participation in the retail deposit guarantee scheme means any eventual loss will be borne by the Crown.
NZN