News
In Levying AML Fines, FDIC Will Look More to Bank Board
By Kieran Beer
printBank board of directors members can expect to pay civil money penalties if their institutions fail to correct Bank Secrecy Act violations, a Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. official said on Tuesday. While the agency has historically levied money penalties against directors for certain violations, it has rarely sought them for failures to fix anti-money laundering (AML) issues, said Lisa Arquette, associate director at the FDIC, after speaking on a panel at an American Bankers Association conference in Washington, D.C. As the agency seeks ways to punish AML infractions without undercutting the soundness of a financial institution, it will increasingly look...
TO READ THE FULL STORY
Related News
Sometimes a decline in bank enforcement actions isn't a good thing, even for bankers. Such is the takeaway of a review of enforcement action data spanning back five years, during which the number of formal Bank Secrecy Act penalties fell nearly 20 percent while fines and regulatory demands grew.
The U.S. insurer of federal banks should reconsider how it treats recidivist financial institutions and harmonize how regional examiners monitor for Bank Secrecy Act violations, a governmental watchdog said.
U.S. national banks must formally declare their risk limits and ensure the independence of their boards of directors, the Treasury Department ruled Thursday.
The Bank of England reportedly exerts "strong pressure" on Russia's second largest bank, an arrested Zetas leader's sons tweet incriminating photographs, and more, in this week's news roundup.
Large banks need to clearly delineate which senior executives are responsible for Bank Secrecy Act compliance violations, the U.S. Comptroller of the Currency said in a speech Monday.
An influential Senate subcommittee will hear testimony on tax evasion through offshore banks, Switzerland agrees to follow automatic data exchange standards and more, in this week's news roundup.
Last year, I told you not to believe any of that "best of years, worst of years" stuff à la Charles Dickens with regard to 2012. But if 2013 was less eventful than the prior year, every indication is that 2014 will be "challenging" for financial institutions and regulators.
The U.S. Justice Department seizes digital funds tied to an Internet black market, Republicans line up behind effort to fight FATCA and more, in this week's news roundup.
Ahead of expected anti-money laundering regulations for investment advisers, some private equity firms may find themselves subject to such oversight for a reason few would have guessed: their fee structures.
Lawmakers should expand financial safe harbor protections to allow banks to better share their suspicions about money laundering and its predicate crimes, a top U.S. regulatory official said Sunday.
Amid all of the political rhetoric and bombast that accompanied television coverage of the 16-day government shutdown last month, one question never seemed to get any airtime: what did it all mean for the financial compliance industry?
JPMorgan Chase launches AML SWAT team as the bank's legal costs mount, Turkey blacklists over 350 entities in an effort to comply with United Nations sanctions, and more, in this week's news roundup.
Federal officials will weigh whether financial institutions can bank medical marijuana shops, New York's financial regulators asks two financial consultancies for data and more, in this week's news roundup.
Germany's BaFin is reportedly investigating potential AML violations by Deutsche Bank, a U.K. court could order the British government to pay millions to compensate a blacklisted Iranian bank, and more, in this midweek roundup.
The United States has done little to address gaps identified in 2006 by an international anti-money laundering watchdog, despite a follow-up national review expected within the next two years, say consultants.
Though none can predict the future, one thing in the AML world seems certain: the jobs of compliance officers won't get any easier in 2013.
A slew of recent enforcement actions issued by federal regulators contain stern warnings for senior bank managers that they are responsible for their institution's compliance with U.S. anti-money laundering rules, say analysts.
Federal examiners are requiring bank boards of directors to be more deeply involved in their institutions' anti-money laundering programs, say compliance officers who have recently faced regulatory audits.
Cost-cutting and consolidation among banks is undermining Bank Secrecy Act compliance at some financial institutions, according to bank regulators.
The Federal Depositors Insurance Corp. issued cease-and-desist orders against two banks in November over lax due diligence in their anti-money laundering programs, the agency said Monday.