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Betfred and Oddsking operator fined UK?2.9m for core AML failings
Petfre (Gibraltar) Limited has incurred a UK?2.87m (US$3,110,580) penalty from the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC), which found breaches of compliance with anti-money laundering and social responsibility obligations.
Online Published Date:
29 September 2022
Appeared in issue:
298 - 01 November 2022
Cathay United Bank pays Hong Kong$11m for CDD and risk management failures
The Hong Kong branch of Cathay United Bank Limited (CUBHK) has been fined HK$11,000,000 (US$1,401,300) by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) after an onsite inspection and further investigation discovered rule breaches around customer due diligence (CDD) and risk management between April 2012 and February 2016.
Online Published Date:
29 September 2022
Appeared in issue:
298 - 01 November 2022
Deutsche Bank agrees to pay US$26.25m over alleged AML control misrepresentations and treatment of high-risk clients
German lender Deutsche Bank AG, on 23 September, agreed to a US$26.25 million settlement of a claim by shareholders, challenging the veracity of disclosures about its anti-money laundering and know your customer controls, and its handling of risky customers like convicted sex-offender and financier Jeffrey Epstein, now deceased.
Online Published Date:
29 September 2022
Appeared in issue:
298 - 01 November 2022
Unzer fined ?145,000 in Luxembourg for AML breaches
Payment services business Unzer Luxembourg S.A. must pay ?145,000 (US$138,700) after the Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier (CSSF) found a series of anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing failings during an onsite inspection across 2020 and 2021.
Online Published Date:
29 September 2022
Appeared in issue:
298 - 01 November 2022
Credit Agricole subsidiaries pay US$1,121,297 over US sanctions violations
Two firms in France's Credit Agricole banking group have reached settlements with the US Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) over apparent breaches of US sanctions programmes.
Online Published Date:
29 September 2022
Appeared in issue:
298 - 01 November 2022
Tango Card pays US$116,049 for apparent violations of US sanctions
Stored value card provider Tango Card has agreed to pay the US Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) US$116,048.60 to settle a claim that it breached multiple US sanctions programs.
Online Published Date:
03 October 2022
Appeared in issue:
298 - 01 November 2022
FinCEN issues final rule on beneficial ownership reporting
The US financial intelligence unit issued a final rule on who will have to report as beneficial owners - the threshold defined and personal information needed - of which legal entities, on 29 September.
Online Published Date:
03 October 2022
Appeared in issue:
298 - 01 November 2022
Sanctions evasion: the prospect and nature of punishment
UK law enforcement have made arrests linked to suspected sanctions evasion but Aziz Rahman and Zulfi Meerza of Rahman Ravelli question the capacity for future criminal prosecutions.
Online Published Date:
04 October 2022
Appeared in issue:
298 - 01 November 2022
AML IT - legacy and change
Technology, once cutting edge, can all too soon blunt efficiency and effectiveness as regulations and expectations move on. Keith Nuthalllooks at how businesses are upgrading their systems to keep up with new demands and standards.
Online Published Date:
05 October 2022
Appeared in issue:
298 - 01 November 2022
Progress on ML risks 'paralysed' - Basel Institute on Governance
Global progress on tackling the risks posed by money laundering and terrorist financing (ML/TF) is "paralysed" according to the latest annual index report from the Basel Institute on Governance.
Online Published Date:
06 October 2022
Appeared in issue:
298 - 01 November 2022
EU eighth package of Russia sanctions aims wide at gunmakers to singers
The European Union (EU) Council of Ministers has widened the scope of comprehensive sanctions imposed on Russia since it invaded Ukraine on 24 February so they can also be imposed on people or organisations helping to breach these measures.
Online Published Date:
07 October 2022
Appeared in issue:
298 - 01 November 2022
Industrial abuse of UK limited liability partnerships laid bare - TI report
More than one in ten limited liability partnerships (LLPs) ever incorporated in the UK fit the profile of those used in economic crime, according to Transparency International UK.
Online Published Date:
10 October 2022
Appeared in issue:
298 - 01 November 2022
Inflationary pressures - trouble ahead
Surging prices can find both businesses and individuals suddenly desperate, with cash-rich criminals all too ready to exploit their plight. Keith Nuthalllooks at how economic stress is likely to affect laundering patterns and the need to reset compliance controls.
Online Published Date:
12 October 2022
Appeared in issue:
298 - 01 November 2022
Ukraine-Russia conflict [22] - sanctions: EU round eight
12/10/22: The European Union is deepening and widening its response to Russian aggression in Ukraine, including a ?7 billion package of import bans, further asset freeze designations and extension of existing restrictions to the oblasts of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia. Susannah Cogman and Elizabeth Head of Herbert Smith Freehills work through the measures.
Online Published Date:
14 October 2022
Appeared in issue:
298 - 01 November 2022
Don't be PEP-paranoid
Over the years, I have seen an enormous amount of confusion - and possibly some hyperventilation - when it comes to identifying and managing PEP risk, says Mario Menz. I often encounter what I call "PEP Paranoia" - a feeling of fear and helplessness that grinds onboarding to a halt whenever firms discover someone is a politically exposed person. PEP Paranoia seems to affect everyone, from junior analysts to senior executives: firms deal with it in different ways, from declining relationships to collecting, and creating, extensive documentation. But there is a better way of managing PEP risk.
Online Published Date:
14 October 2022
Appeared in issue:
298 - 01 November 2022
Bittrex, virtual currency trading platform, fined US$29m for wilful BSA breaches
Washington-based convertible virtual currency trading venue, Bittrex, which has also served as an exchange for over 250 different CVCs - including bitcoin, ether, monero, zcash, and dash - must pay US$29,280,829.20 for violations of the US Bank Secrecy Act (BSA).
Online Published Date:
14 October 2022
Appeared in issue:
298 - 01 November 2022
Restitution for Ukraine - ways and means
The list of Russian assets seized by European and North American opponents to its invasion of Ukraine grows ever larger, with super yachts joining bank accounts and expensive properties sequestered. But could they be sold? Should they be sold? And should the money be spent on rebuilding Ukraine, if it drives out the Russian forces? Keith Nuthall explores the options.
Online Published Date:
14 October 2022
Appeared in issue:
298 - 01 November 2022
Gatehouse fined UK?1.58m in UK for CDD and monitoring breaches
Sharia-compliant bank Gatehouse, specialising in real estate services, is to pay a UK?1,584,100 (US$1,769,676) penalty for "serious shortcomings" around customer due diligence (CDD) and ongoing monitoring in the period 9 June 2014 to 5 July 2017.
Online Published Date:
15 October 2022
Appeared in issue:
298 - 01 November 2022
Essential ingredients - data for compliance
A decision based on incorrect data, while possibly rational, is unlikely to be right or satisfy an examiner. Keith Nuthall and Sarah Gibbons look at how AML functions are addressing a fundamental qualitative issue.
Online Published Date:
17 October 2022
Appeared in issue:
298 - 01 November 2022
GGPoker operator fined UK?672,000 for AML and social responsibility breaches
NSUS Limited, which trades as GGPoker and operates ggpoker.co.uk, is to pay UK?672,000 (US$757,550) after the UK Gambling Commission determined it had failed in its anti-money laundering obligations and by not acting to prevent risk of social harm.
Online Published Date:
17 October 2022
Appeared in issue:
298 - 01 November 2022
Star Entertainment fined A$100m in New South Wales over AML failings around junket operators but keeps licence
The Star Casino will continue to operate, under a manager appointed by the NSW Independent Casino Commission (NICC), while its licence is suspended over disregard for Australian anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing regulations, notably in dealings with high-roller clients introduced by junket operators.
Online Published Date:
17 October 2022
Appeared in issue:
298 - 01 November 2022
Cost & benefit - AML performance measurement
So much anti-money laundering activity calls for big data analysis it is ironic, at the least, how little rigorous statistical study there appears to be of its impact, but if you can't, don't or won't measure a strategy's results, how can you know if it's working? Paul Cochranegoes in search of KPIs*.
Online Published Date:
18 October 2022
Appeared in issue:
298 - 01 November 2022
Network international - ML/TF intelligence channels
A clear need, information technology compatibility a lessening hindrance and the steady removal of legal impediments all point positive for cross-border data sharing in economic crime investigations. Sara Lewis reports from Brussels;Barbara Barkhausen is in Sydney; Keith Nuthall in Ottawa; and Raghavendra Verma in New Delhi.
Online Published Date:
18 October 2022
Appeared in issue:
298 - 01 November 2022
Teamwork - how to pull together
There are multiple moving parts in an anti-money laundering function, requiring careful thought, management and maintenance to be effective: foremost are the personnel, and so should command the closest attention, as Keith Nuthall, in Ottawa, Jens Kastner, in Hamburg, and Heba Hashem, in Dubai,discover.
Online Published Date:
19 October 2022
Appeared in issue:
298 - 01 November 2022
FATF sidelines Russia, blacklists Myanmar - plenary outcomes
The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has acted against Russia, further squeezing it from the international anti-money laundering and counter terrorist financing (AML/CTF) system over its invasion of Ukraine.
Online Published Date:
22 October 2022
Appeared in issue:
298 - 01 November 2022
Self-regulation of AML by UK legal sector 'broken' - report
Anti-money laundering supervision of legal professionals in the UK, split across nine bodies, is "fragmented, with enforcement action uneven and inadequate", according to research by Spotlight on Corruption.
Online Published Date:
22 October 2022
Appeared in issue:
298 - 01 November 2022
A capital idea
If a risk can be modelled then a capital requirement can be set. The Bank of England is already looking at prudential regulation around climate change exposure so why not for financial crime risk? Denis O'Connor explores the idea.
Online Published Date:
27 October 2022
Appeared in issue:
298 - 01 November 2022
Cathay Pacific Realty fined Can$206,250 by FINTRAC for AML violations
Cathay Pacific Realty Ltd, a real estate broker in Vancouver, British Columbia has been ordered to pay Can$206,250 (US$150,400) after FINTRAC found the firm had violated anti-money laundering and counter terrorist financing obligations in 2019.
Online Published Date:
27 October 2022
Appeared in issue:
298 - 01 November 2022
Virtual, real or hybrid? - AML training post pandemic
One benefit of Covid-19 is it forced the pace of online development in communications and meeting applications, enabling compliance teams to still work collaboratively, but is distance learning and testing to be the standard going forward; will in-person workshops make a come-back; or are various mixes of the two most likely? Keith Nuthall talks to experienced instructors about the advantages and shortcomings of AML/CFT training online and looks at the event and tuition formats now offered by commercial producers and trade associations.
Online Published Date:
27 October 2022
Appeared in issue:
298 - 01 November 2022
Where needed - the optimal use of SARs
Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs), at their best, are crucial intelligence in the fight against illicit finance. But with AML-obliged entities filing defensively and some financial intelligence units (FIUs) flooded with reports, how can 'good SARs' make it to the frontline of law enforcement?Paul Cochrane investigates.
Online Published Date:
27 October 2022
Appeared in issue:
298 - 01 November 2022
Credit Suisse settles claim it helped French clients evade tax, pays €238m
Criminal proceedings against Credit Suisse for helping customers open accounts in Switzerland out of reach of French tax authorities have ended in an agreement with French prosecutors that the Swiss bank will pay a €238m (US$234m) penalty without a guilty plea.
Online Published Date:
27 October 2022
Appeared in issue:
298 - 01 November 2022