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From The Editor: Lessons from a Tough Year in Compliance
printI'm not going to give you that "best of times, worst of times" crap in summing up 2012. When it comes to the year in compliance, there was just the "worst of times" and not much, if any, "best." Still, it's a feature of the human spirit that we take our lumps and try to draw lessons from them. Here are two lessons I take from two of the biggest settlements meted out this year for anti-money laundering (AML), sanctions and other compliance shortcomings. "The regulator is always right." The New York State Department of Financial Services' (NYSDFS) Aug. 6...
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Though none can predict the future, one thing in the AML world seems certain: the jobs of compliance officers won't get any easier in 2013.
For many anti-money laundering and sanctions professionals, 2012 will be remembered as a year of record fines. Banks paid billions to settle AML and sanctions compliance violations, with one penalty alone reaching almost $2 billion.
Criticism of the U.S. Justice Department's apparent decision to forego indictments of HSBC and its employees misses a larger point: the department probably couldn't have won convictions if it tried, say prosecutors.
The U.S. government's landmark case against HSBC Holdings Plc for knowingly turning a blind eye to financial crime is seemingly fated to end much as it began: complex and messy.
A nearly $330 million deferred prosecution agreement with a London-based bank reinforces the peril financial institutions face when engaging in look-backs for possible sanctions or anti-money laundering violations.
New York's $340 million sanctions settlement with Standard Chartered Plc will likely serve as a model for similar compliance-related agreements, even as it deters some banks from obtaining state licenses.
A New York agency's threat to revoke Standard Chartered Bank's state license for alleged sanctions violations is based on a flawed understanding of U.S. Treasury regulations, say former U.S. officials.
U.S. investigators looking into potential sanctions violations by Standard Chartered Bank will likely expedite their case following allegations by New York officials that the bank's executives permitted compliance violations, say sources.