Three news to start your week: September 23
Danske Bank to Pay $7 Million in French Settlement Over Estonia Money-Laundering
(The Wall Street Journal)
Danske Bank, Denmark's largest financial institution, announced that it has worked closely with French authorities and has agreed to settle for 6.33 million euros, effectively concluding the investigation led by France's national financial prosecutor.
As Senior General Counsel Niels Heering stated, this was the last remaining investigation into the bank's management of nonresident accounts linked to its Estonia branch.
In 2018, Danske revealed that over $230 billion had moved through its Estonia branch from Russia and other post-Soviet nations, with the bank acknowledging that many of these transactions were likely illicit. This revelation sparked extensive scrutiny over Danske's compliance protocols and corporate governance practices.
Additionally, in 2022, Danske agreed to a $2 billion settlement with both US and Danish authorities regarding issues stemming from the Estonia branch, admitting to violations related to anti-money laundering.
FCA asks banks to report WhatsApp breaches after US watchdog fines
(Financial News)
In a recent survey, the Financial Conduct Authority has requested that banks "provide a list of confirmed breaches of unmonitored and/or encrypted applications policies that have been recorded in the UK over the last 12 months," as it investigates the usage of platforms like WhatsApp, Signal, and Telegram in the financial sector. The regulator seeks details regarding the seniority of the individuals involved, the business sector they belonged to, and how the breaches were discovered. Additionally, the FCA is interested in the "disciplinary outcome or effect on compensation and promotions" related to these violations.
US regulators have already fined some of the industry's most prominent institutions, including JPMorgan, Bank of America, and Goldman Sachs, for failing to monitor potential market abuse stemming from "off-channel" communications. Since the inquiries began three years ago, over $2 billion in penalties have resulted.
TD Bank CEO Bharat Masrani 'takes responsiblity' for $3 billion in AML fines
(AML Intelligence)
TD Bank has officially announced that CEO Bharat Masrani will retire on April 10. Raymond Chun, who currently leads TD's Canadian personal and commercial banking, will assume the role.
This transition comes shortly after TD Bank disclosed it had allocated $3 billion to address anticipated anti-money laundering (AML) fines in its US division. Masrani acknowledged the situation: "The anti-money laundering challenges we face took place on my watch as CEO, and I take full responsibility." He also expressed confidence in the company's leadership, ensuring stakeholders a smooth transition.
