On Thursday, February 12th, Belgian police conducted raids on multiple offices of the European Commission. A spokesperson for the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) confirmed that the search was part of an “evidence-gathering operation” related to an investigation but did not provide further details.
According to the Financial Times, the investigation is linked to the sale of 23 buildings by the Belgian sovereign wealth fund SFPIM in 2024, which is suspected of violating EU regulations. Sources revealed that the budget department of the European Commission was also among those being searched.
The report cited two sources who said that police conducted searches at various offices of the European Commission in Brussels on Thursday morning, including the budget department.
The investigation reportedly concerns real estate sales within the EU, with these sales occurring during the tenure of former EU Budget Commissioner Johannes Hahn.
Hahn was responsible for managing the EU’s €1 trillion budget until 2024. After his term ended, he was appointed as the EU Special Envoy on the Cyprus issue.
The investigation, led by the EPPO, involves the Belgian sovereign wealth fund SFPIM. In 2024, the fund acquired 23 buildings for €900 million. At the time, the European Commission stated that the tender for this transaction complied with EU financial regulations.
EPPO spokesperson Tine Hollevoet stated, “EPPO can confirm that we are conducting an ongoing investigation and gathering evidence.”
“At this stage, we are unable to disclose more information to avoid influencing the ongoing investigative process and its outcomes,” she added.
EU auditors had flagged irregularities in this transaction as early as 2025. In its annual report of 2024, the European Court of Auditors (ECA) found that SFPIM was the sole bidder for the tender and had submitted its bid before the European Commission issued the call for bids.
The report also noted that despite SFPIM’s bank guarantee not meeting the bidding requirements, the company still won the contract.
The European Court of Auditors also remarked that the evaluation by the Budget Committee lacked sufficient independence as all members were under the authority of a responsible official.
In January, the European Parliament, responsible for reviewing EU budget expenditures, criticized the bidding process and expressed concerns specifically about single-bid tenders like this one.
According to the response of the Budget Committee to the auditors, out of the 23 buildings sold to SFPIM, 17 are still leased by the Commission until 2029, with rental expenses totaling €255 million.
A spokesperson for the Budget Committee stated, “The sale of these buildings followed established procedures and agreements, and we believe the entire process was compliant.” The committee also added that EU executive bodies are “fully cooperating with EPPO and Belgian authorities on this matter.”
Both the EU anti-fraud agency OLAF and the Belgian Federal Police declined to comment on requests from the Financial Times. SFPIM and Hahn did not immediately respond to requests for comment.