Financial Regulator Slams Major Institutions for Money Laundering Failures
The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) has taken significant action against several major institutions for their failures to comply with anti-money laundering (AML) regulations. In a series of high-profile enforcement actions, FinCEN has imposed substantial penalties on institutions that have not implemented adequate AML programs or failed to report suspicious transactions.
Record-Breaking Penalty for Binance
In November, FinCEN imposed a record-breaking $3.4 billion penalty on Binance, the world’s largest virtual asset service provider, for its failure to register as a money services business and its inadequate AML program. The regulator found that Binance had processed over 100,000 transactions linked to terrorist organizations and other illicit activities without reporting them.
Other Enforcement Actions
- FinCEN imposed a $15 million penalty on Bancredito International Bank and Trust Corporation, an international banking entity in Puerto Rico, for its willful failures to file suspicious activity reports (SARs) and implement an AML program. The bank had processed millions of dollars in suspicious transactions through the US without proper monitoring or reporting.
- FinCEN took action against Kingdom Trust Company, a trust company that failed to grow its compliance program commensurate with its expanding business, leading to unreported suspicious activity linked to a trade-based money laundering scheme and multiple securities fraud schemes.
- FinCEN imposed penalties on individual Gyanendra Kumar Azre, who served as the BSA Officer of a New York credit union and had his own unregistered MSB. Azre failed to implement adequate AML controls, allowing hundreds of millions of dollars in high-risk and suspicious funds to move through the credit union without proper monitoring or reporting.
Commitment to Ensuring Compliance
“These enforcement actions demonstrate FinCEN’s commitment to ensuring that financial institutions comply with AML regulations and protect the integrity of our financial system,” said a senior official at FinCEN. “We will continue to work closely with law enforcement agencies and private industry to address risky sectors for money laundering and promote justice for those who seek to harm lives and livelihoods.”