News

Settlements, Delays Hamper US Progress Against Money Launderers, Senators Claim

By Fred Williams

U.S. prosecutors regularly offer deferred prosecution or non-prosecution agreements to banks that repeatedly violate anti-money laundering rules, giving them and other lenders little incentive to build strong AML programs and reject overly high-risk business, lawmakers said Thursday. The Justice Department's alleged reluctance to fully prosecute corporations for criminal offenses is not limited to settlements with high-profile banks like HSBC, which managed to avoid trial 10 years ago by agreeing to pay $1.9 billion in penalties for laundering at least $881 million for drug traffickers and helping blacklisted parties circumvent U.S. sanctions. "The federal government's failure to pursue the maximum criminal...

TO READ THE FULL STORY