Financial institutions continue to struggle with hiring effective Bank Secrecy Act officers, allocating sufficient compliance resources and employing adequate internal controls, U.S. regulators said Tuesday.
Ireland's central bank fined XA MPS Financial Limited approximately $67,580 for AML violations, a court sentenced former Greek Defense Minister Akis Tsochadzopoulos to 20 years in prison for money laundering, and more, in the midweek roundup.
The U.S. Treasury Department and Federal Reserve Board disclosed long-awaited enforcement actions against JPMorgan Chase for Bank Secrecy Act failures Monday - the same day the regulators punished the company for trading violations.
Criticisms 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.
U.S. sanctions against an international gang with thousands of American members will challenge compliance officers of small and midsize banks, say attorneys and former government officials.
Citigroup's top anti-money laundering and sanctions compliance officer has resigned to take a position at JPMorgan Chase, according to an e-mail obtained by ACAMS MoneyLaundering.com and an individual familiar with bank discussions.
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.
U.S. banking regulators have initiated talks with JPMorgan Chase that could result in an anti-money laundering enforcement action related to insufficient staffing and other issues, say sources.
Bank Secrecy Act compliance officers should proactively shield themselves from both budget cuts and potential retaliation for disclosing regulatory violations, according to a former OCC attorney.
The U.S. Treasury Department's sanctions arm disclosed Thursday that it had fined JPMorgan Chase Bank N.A. over $88 million, the largest fine independently levied by the agency under 2007 penalty powers.
The ongoing U.S. financial regulatory overhaul and recent compliance penalties have sharply increased the demand for seasoned anti-money laundering professionals at federal agencies and banks, say sources.
A former loss mitigation specialist at Chase Bank accepted $10,000 in bribes and illegally disclosed a suspicious activity report to the client it was filed on, a California jury said Monday.
Compliance officers who have relocated to different cities or even taken a better paying position at a bank down the street often learn quickly that the one-size approach to compliance does not fit every financial institution.
U.S. banks are still fine tuning policies on when to report suspicious activity and reject transactions tied to online gambling after the passing of a June 1 enforcement deadline.
After more than a year of shrinking, the anti-money laundering job market is showing signs of growth again, with large financial institutions looking to refill top slots in compliance departments.
Facing layoffs and market turmoil, some former and current anti-money laundering officers are turning to the one place they believe will offer them stable income and job security: the United States government.
As more and more financial institutions rocked by the deepening mortgage crisis announce painful job cuts, anti-money laundering compliance officers must take quick action to protect their departments, compliance consultants say.
The group, assembled by the American Bankers Association, will work with the U.S. Treasury Department as part of Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson's plans to improve Bank Secrecy Act efficiency.