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3 news to start your week: July 20

Written by TWC Staff | Mon, Jul 20, 2026

NY regulators fine Swedbank $50M in Panama Papers probe

American Banker

The New York State Department of Financial Services imposed a $50 million fine on Swedish bank Swedbank for failing to turn over information about its extensive connections to the Panama Papers.

The agency said Thursday that Swedbank masked ties between its customers and Mossack Fonseca, a Panamanian law firm specializing in offshore services. Mossack Fonseca was at the center of the 2016 Panama Papers scandal, which exposed a global network of offshore shell companies used by wealthy individuals to evade taxes and potentially facilitate criminal activity.

The leak was one of the most significant in history, involving roughly 11.5 million documents from Mossack Fonseca. It revealed the financial secrets of politicians, billionaires, and celebrities across more than 200 countries. New York regulators began investigating companies connected to the law firm in the aftermath of the scandal.

Swedbank and its New York branch failed to produce responsive information when replying to multiple requests from NYSDFS, according to the regulator.
 

Deutsche Bank fined $2M by Australian regulator

Yahoo! Finance

Deutsche Bank was ordered to pay $2 million for incorrectly reporting more than 260,000 over-the-counter derivative transactions, according to an Australian financial regulator.

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission issued the infringement notice against Deutsche Bank for foreign exchange and commodities transactions between Oct. 21, 2024, and Aug. 15, 2025.

The bank failed to accurately report the direction field data for 20,483 outstanding transactions and 244,091 terminated or matured transactions across 208 business days, ASIC said.

Deutsche Bank cooperated with ASIC's investigation and is working to prevent future errors, the regulator said. The bank now has a remediation program in place to address the issues ASIC identified and to strengthen its derivative transaction reporting governance and controls framework, according to a source familiar with the matter.

This marks Deutsche Bank's second monetary penalty of the year. The UK's Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation fined a London branch of the bank £165,000 ($221,000) for processing payments for a Russian company in violation of sanctions.

 

Vietnam fines crypto traders up to $1,900 for using unlicensed platforms

VnExpress

Vietnam will fine domestic investors up to VND50 million (US$1,900) for trading crypto assets through unlicensed platforms under a new decree governing the country's pilot digital asset market.

The government issued Decree 284, introducing administrative penalties for violations involving crypto assets.

The decree, effective Sept. 1, marks the first time Vietnam has imposed penalties on domestic investors who trade crypto assets outside service providers licensed by the Ministry of Finance.

Under the new rules, individuals trading crypto assets through organizations not licensed by the ministry will face fines ranging from VND30 million to VND50 million.