15 March 2016

David Corker’s comments re enforcement actions published in ACAMS Moneylaundering.com

Federal regulators of anti-money laundering rules issued 16 percent more enforcement actions in 2015 than in the previous year, a jump due in part to an intensified focus on nonbank firms.

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Though the subject of individual accountability continued to be a topic of debate at industry events, signs of a rise in regulatory actions against executives and compliance officers were scarce in 2015. The OCC and FinCEN levied a total six AML-related fines against company employees compared with four the previous year.

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Despite criticisms from some corners that Britain’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) was softening its oversight of banks, the regulator issued its largest-ever AML penalty in November, a £72 million fine against Barclays for its poor scrutiny of transactions processed on behalf of “ultrahigh-net-worth politically exposed persons,” or PEPs.

The bank “did well to avoid being prosecuted because there was clearly a breach of the money laundering regulations,” said David Corker, a partner with Corker Binning. “It was defiance of the regulations.”

Read the full article in ACAMS Moneylaundering.com here.