ALBAWABA - The U.S. Treasury Department announced on Tuesday that it is imposing a $1.2 billion fine on Bank of America – America’s second biggest bank – for violating anti-money laundering and sanctions laws.
“Today’s actions send a clear message that even the biggest financial institutions are not above the law.” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement, The $1.2 billion fine is the third-largest ever issued by the U.S. Treasury Department.
“When a bank of this size fails to meet its anti-money laundering and sanctions obligations, the consequences extend far beyond its own walls, exposing the entire U.S. financial system to significant illicit finance risks,” he said.
Elsewhere, with the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, Bank of America settled to the tune of $11.6 million over “apparent violations of numerous sanctions programs, including on Iran, Russia, narcotics, and global terrorism.”
US TREASURY IMPOSES $1.2B in FINES on BANK OF AMERICA over 'ANTI-MONEY LAUNDERING' & 'SANCTIONS VIOLATIONS'
Bessent: ‘Even the BIGGEST FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS are NOT ABOVE THE LAW’ https://t.co/hakoACz38O
The Treasuries’ Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) assessed the fine for Bank of America’s “failure to mitigate and report priority national security risks, including Chinese Money Laundering Networks and illicit finance along the southwest border.’'
Bank of America “admits that it willfully violated’’ the 1970 Bank Secrecy Act, which requires banks to help the government detect and prevent money laundering, according to the U.S. Treasury Department.
“Financial crime compliance is serious, and we are responsible for getting it right,” Bank of America said in a statement.
“We worked with regulators to reach these penalty resolutions stemming from violations cited in the previously reported 2024 (Comptroller of the Currency) Consent Order and FinCEN’s investigation.
“We have invested billions of dollars in technology and dedicated thousands of employees to combat financial crime, and our team is far along with and committed to completing the work required to address the issues raised by our regulators.’’ It added.
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