Louis Vuitton is under investigation by the Dutch public prosecution service for alleged money laundering related to approximately €3 million in suspicious cash transactions. The investigation focuses on a Chinese woman from Lelystad who repeatedly made large cash purchases of luxury goods at Louis Vuitton stores in the Netherlands.

Prosecutors allege that Louis Vuitton did not take sufficient measures to scrutinize the transactions, such as requesting identification or questioning the purchase patterns. A staff member is suspected of assisting the woman in structuring her payments to remain below the €10,000 reporting threshold, which would trigger mandatory checks by retailers under Dutch law. Shops are required to verify clients and report cash payments exceeding that amount.

The woman is accused of sending the purchased items to China through parcel services, as part of Daigou trading. This system involves purchasing luxury goods abroad to circumvent high import taxes in China. Prosecutors stated that this method is frequently used by criminal underground bankers to launder illegal funds. Investigators suspect the woman received large sums from a convicted underground banker to finance her purchases.

The prosecution department contends that Louis Vuitton facilitated potential money laundering by failing to adequately scrutinize the transactions. The full extent of the Daigou market remains unclear, but estimates suggest it was worth over €74 billion at the end of 2023.

The decision on whether Louis Vuitton will face prosecution is pending. The prosecution department is evaluating whether to bring the case to court, with proceedings not anticipated to resume until next year. Louis Vuitton has not yet responded to the allegations and was unavailable for comment. The company operates four official stores in the Netherlands.