FinCEN’s Efforts in Promoting Compliance and Enforcement
Washington D.C. - FinCEN’s Progress in Combating Financial Crimes
The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) has received over 240 unique tips since the program’s inception, with many of them being highly relevant to Treasury’s top priorities. As part of its efforts to promote compliance and enforcement, FinCEN is taking a firm approach to addressing violations of the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) and economic sanctions.
Awarding Whistleblowers
FinCEN is offering awards ranging from 10 to 30 percent of penalties collected to whistleblowers who voluntarily submit original information about certain BSA or economic sanctions violations. This program aims to encourage individuals to come forward with valuable information that can lead to successful enforcement actions.
Recent Enforcement Actions
FinCEN has taken several recent enforcement actions, highlighting the importance of compliance in non-traditional sectors. Some notable cases include:
- Kingdom Trust Company: FinCEN imposed a $1.5 million civil money penalty against Kingdom Trust for willful failure to file Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs). The company’s failures led to unreported suspicious activity related to a trade-based money laundering scheme and multiple securities fraud schemes.
- Key points:
- Failure to file SARs
- Willful violation of the BSA
- Unreported suspicious activity related to money laundering and securities fraud schemes
- Key points:
- Binance: FinCEN took action against Binance, imposing a $2.5 million civil penalty for willful violations of the BSA. The company failed to implement adequate anti-money laundering controls, allowing hundreds of millions of dollars in high-risk and suspicious funds to move through its platform without proper monitoring or reporting.
- Key points:
- Failure to implement adequate anti-money laundering controls
- Willful violation of the BSA
- Hundreds of millions of dollars in high-risk and suspicious funds moved through the platform without proper monitoring or reporting
- Key points:
- Asre: FinCEN imposed a five-year ban on Asre’s participation in the conduct of the affairs of a BSA-regulated financial institution for his failure to register an MSB with FinCEN. Asre also failed to implement adequate anti-money laundering controls while serving as the BSA Officer of a New York credit union.
- Key points:
- Failure to register an MSB with FinCEN
- Five-year ban on participation in the conduct of the affairs of a BSA-regulated financial institution
- Failure to implement adequate anti-money laundering controls
- Key points:
Partnership with Authorities and Private Industry
FinCEN looks forward to continuing its partnership with authorities and private industry, working together to protect the financial system from harm. The agency is committed to implementing the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA), proposing new rules for the residential real estate and investment adviser industries, and using enforcement authorities as necessary to safeguard the financial system.
Conclusion
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In conclusion, FinCEN’s efforts in promoting compliance and enforcement are crucial in addressing risks related to money laundering. The agency is committed to partnering with authorities and private industry to protect the financial system from harm. By engaging with one another, we can learn from each other and better position ourselves to address these risks.