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Sofia - Bulgarian authorities said on Sunday they had detained three more people on suspicion of plotting to destabilise the country's banking system by spreading false information about the health of its commercial banks.
The arrests, which follow the detention of two men on the same grounds on Saturday, are part of a criminal investigation launched after depositors on Friday rushed to withdraw savings from a second bank in the space of a week.
The run on First Investment Bank, Bulgaria's third largest lender - which bankers and economists say is well-capitalised - prompted the central bank to warn of a deliberate and systematic attack on the banking sector.
Most corrupt
The central bank took over Bulgaria's fourth largest lender, Corporate Commercial Bank, last weekend after customers, who were rattled by online and media reports of suspect deals involving the bank, rushed to withdraw their savings. The bank has denied any wrongdoing.
The run on Corpbank has shone a light on weak economic governance in Bulgaria, which joined the European Union in 2007, but remains its poorest member state and one of its most corrupt.
Leaders of the main political parties on Friday set 5 October as the date for a snap parliamentary election, putting an end to weeks of political uncertainty that has coincided with the bank runs.
