Although headline-grabbing settlements north of $1 billion have become the new normal for depository institutions operating in the United States, how those deals are impacting bank behavior is still unclear, at least for now, according to Brandon Garrett.
Plans by the U.S. securities market regulator to more strictly enforce regulations will result in a jump in anti-money laundering penalties both by the agency and its private sector partner.
Facing mounting regulatory pressure in the past year, several multinational banks are weighing whether to scale back their cash letter processing and other services for some of their foreign counterparts, say compliance professionals.
The EU is pushing the United States for answers following reports that the National Security Agency siphoned bank messaging data held in the European Union, possibly in violation of a July 2010 treaty.
U.S. lawmakers called for testimony from federal investigators Thursday as part of an effort to push for more aggressive punishment of individuals and financial institutions that aid money launderers and sanctions dodgers.
Criticism of the U.S. Justice Department's apparent decision to forego indictments of HSBC and its employees misses a larger point: the department probably couldn't have won convictions if it tried, say prosecutors.
The U.S. government's landmark case against HSBC Holdings Plc for knowingly turning a blind eye to financial crime is seemingly fated to end much as it began: complex and messy.
Expected criminal and civil settlements over anti-money laundering lapses will likely cost HSBC Bank USA $1.5 billion or "significantly" more, the financial institution said in a regulatory filing Monday.
A newly implemented plan by HSBC Holdings Plc to export U.S. anti-money laundering standards to its global offices faces a difficult but common challenge for big banks: approximately half of its estimated 80 affiliates are located in bank secrecy jurisdictions.
The world's wealthiest hid at least $21 trillion in tax havens by the end of 2010, Ethiopia's financial intelligence unit wants to amend the nation's AML law in order to meet international standards, and more, in the midweek roundup.
Most news accounts of Tuesday's U.S. Senate inquiry into HSBC Holding Plc's compliance failings led with the bank's anti-money laundering compliance chief's announced resignation before lawmakers. But what he meant, it turns out, is that he is only taking another job inside the bank.
HSBC Holdings Plc's compliance chief will step down from his current role, following allegations that the bank failed to better police the anti-money laundering programs of its subsidiaries and affiliates.
HSBC Holdings Plc will close all of its U.S. accounts in the Cayman Islands after a congressional investigation found that the Caribbean branch functioned solely as a dollar-clearing shell bank.
Even prior to the disclosure last month by HSBC Holdings Plc that it would "likely" be the subject of a formal enforcement action related to anti-money laundering (AML) and other violations, things did not look good for the bank, according to Saskia Rietbroek, a partner with nomoneylaundering.com.
HSBC USA is restructuring its compliance department in the wake of the disclosure last week that the bank is bracing for a potential fine over Bank Secrecy Act and sanctions violations.