Bangladesh, Dec. 18 -- Swiss prosecutors in Geneva have declined to open a criminal investigation into claims that the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) and its media partners violated Switzerlands strict banking secrecy laws, delivering a significant affirmation of press freedom in a country long criticized for criminalizing journalistic reporting on financial secrecy. The decision came in response to a complaint filed by Reyl & Cie S.A., a Geneva-based private bank, which sought to have three Swiss journalists interrogated and subjected to searches at their homes and workplaces for cooperating with OCCRP on a sensitive investigation.

The complaint stemmed from a joint cross-border investigation published in April...