Bank Settles Charges for BSA Violations

A New York-chartered "state nonmember insured bank," settled FinCEN charges for willful violations of the Bank Secrecy Act ("BSA").

FinCEN found that the bank violated the BSA by failing to maintain an effective AML program and failing to identify and report suspicious transactions. FinCEN detailed that the bank's failure to address BSA obligations persisted despite prior notifications of deficiencies dating back to 2015. In the Consent Order, the bank admitted to willfully violating the BSA between April 2016 and March 2021.

FinCEN found that the bank either willfully failed to file SARs or failed to file SARs in a timely manner and that such failures totaled tens of millions of dollars and included instances related to tax evasion, public corruption, money laundering and other financial crimes.

As a result, FinCEN found that the bank violated the BSA Rules 1020.210 ("Anti-money laundering program requirements for banks"), 1010.306(a)(1) ("Filing of reports") and 1010.310 ("Reports of transactions in currency").

The bank agreed to a civil money penalty of $15,000,000. FinCEN collaborated with the FDIC on this matter, and credited a civil penalty of $5 million imposed by FDIC. Additionally, the New York State Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) levied a $10 million civil penalty for AML-related violations.