Three news to start your week: April 8
PKB PrivatBank fined for AML shortcomings
(Federal Council)
The Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland ordered PKB PrivatBank to pay a fine of $832,000 (CHF 750,000). According to the results of an OAG investigation, the bank failed to take all the necessary organizational steps to prevent two employees—a consultant responsible for South American customer development and his immediate superior—from engaging in the crime of aggravated money laundering between 2011 and 2014.
The criminal investigation was carried out as part of several proceedings initiated by the OAG concerning the global corruption case known as "LAVA JATO." This case, centered in Brazil and involving the Odebrecht Group, had far-reaching consequences in Switzerland.
Ex-RFEF boss Rubiales detained by police in corruption probe
(ESPN)
Former Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) president Luis Rubiales was arrested by police last week upon returning to Spain as part of a corruption investigation involving the relocation of the Spanish Supercopa to Saudi Arabia.
Rubiales was in the Dominican Republic when raids were conducted on an apartment that belonged to him in Granada. Upon his early return to Spain, he was met by police at Madrid-Barajas airport and questioned. He was released later that same day.
Rubiales has denied any wrongdoing amid allegations of personal benefit from the deal to take the Supercopa to the Gulf nation, stating that his money is "the result of my work and savings."
SEC says self-reporting is key in reducing fines
(The Wall Street Journal)
A senior enforcement official stated that if a financial firm chooses to disclose violations of record keeping rules directly to the US Securities and Exchange Commission, it has the potential to reduce the fines imposed upon it significantly.
Sanjay Wadhwa, deputy director of the SEC's enforcement division, detailed how the regulator assesses fines in such cases, adding that he was responding to "a critique from the defense bar" regarding the agency's methodology of "picking numbers at random."
The SEC has significantly intensified its enforcement efforts in recent years to combat the use of prohibited messaging applications by Wall Street firms. Regulators argue that utilizing apps like WhatsApp and iMessage for business communications undermines their capacity to obtain the necessary records for effective oversight.
