The U.S. Treasury continued its crackdown on facilitators of ransomware payments, sanctioning a second virtual currency exchange and its affiliates and updating FinCEN guidance to help make financial institutions more aware of related red flags.
Sanctions
Posted inRisk Management
Treasury issues 5 recommendations for modernizing U.S. sanctions
The U.S. Department of the Treasury issued a series of recommendations as to how to “adapt and modernize” the government’s use of sanctions to enhance their effectiveness in supporting national security objectives.
Posted inRisk Management
FinCEN report: Ransomware SARs surge past 2020 totals
A Financial Crimes Enforcement Network report on financial trends in Bank Secrecy Act data found a greater number of SARs related to ransomware filed between January and June 2021 than during all of 2020.
Posted inRegulatory Enforcement
Schlumberger subsidiary to pay $1.4M for Russian sanctions violations
A Houston-based subsidiary of oilfield services company Schlumberger has been fined approximately $1.4 million by the Office of Foreign Assets Control for selling goods to a Russian-based energy firm that was under U.S. sanctions.
Posted inRegulatory Enforcement
Treasury sanctions virtual currency exchange as part of ransomware response
The U.S. Department of the Treasury announced “robust actions” to counter ransomware, including blocking the assets of a Russian virtual currency exchange that has facilitated payments for at least eight ransomware variants.
Posted inEurope
Nord Stream 2 a study in sanctions complexity
The construction of Nord Stream 2 and the accompanying geopolitics at play illustrate how difficult it can be for compliance to respond to evolving sanctions risks.
Posted inRegulatory Enforcement
NewTek fined $189K over Iran sanctions violations
NewTek, a Texas-based company that develops 3D animation hardware and software, has agreed to pay $189,483 to settle OFAC allegations it knowingly violated U.S. sanctions against Iran.
Posted inRegulatory Enforcement
Romanian bank penalized over Iran and Syria sanctions lapses
The Office of Foreign Assets Control fined Romania-based First Bank and its U.S. parent company JC Flowers & Co. $862,318 as part of a settlement for First Bank’s processing of transactions in apparent violation of Iran and Syria sanctions.
Posted inRegulatory Enforcement
OFAC fines Bank of China $2.3M for Sudan sanctions violations
The Office of Foreign Assets Control announced Bank of China’s U.K. arm agreed to pay $2.3 million to settle its potential civil liability for processing transactions in apparent violation of now-repealed Sudan sanctions regulations.
Posted inAnti-Bribery
Pandemic not slowing rising AML fine totals, report says
Kroll’s latest annual enforcement review identified $2.2 billion in AML fines in 2020 compared to $444 million in 2019. The first six months of 2021 indicate a similar pace to last year.
