Merrill Lynch fined $12M over SARs filing failures
By 
Kyle Brasseur2023-07-11T17:32:00
Merrill Lynch was assessed penalties totaling $12 million by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) for allegedly failing to file nearly 1,500 required suspicious activity reports (SARs) over the course of a decade.
On Tuesday, the SEC and FINRA each announced fines of $6 million against the broker-dealer. The SEC also cited BAC North America Holding Co. (BACNAH), Merrill Lynch’s parent company, for its role in the alleged failures.
Following the 2009 merger between Merrill Lynch and Bank of America, BACNAH assumed responsibility for creating and implementing Merrill Lynch’s SAR policies and procedures and filing its reports, according to the SEC. During this transition, BACNAH incorrectly applied a $25,000 threshold for reporting suspicious activity, when it should have been $5,000.
THIS IS MEMBERS-ONLY CONTENT
You are not logged in and do not have access to members-only content.
If you are already a registered user or a member, SIGN IN now.
Related articles
-
News BriefFINRA fines Merrill Lynch, BofA Securities $2.3M for reporting, registration failures
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority issued two separate fines against Merrill Lynch and BofA Securities totaling nearly $2.3 million for reporting violations and failing to timely file amendments on registration forms for their registered representatives.
-
News BriefSEC fines registered rep for causing firm’s SARs filing lapses
A registered representative at an unnamed brokerage firm will pay $20,000 to settle charges by the Securities and Exchange Commission that he failed to notify the firm’s anti-money laundering department of apparent suspicious transactions.
-
News BriefSEC fines Archipelago Trading Services $1.5M over SARs filing lapses
Archipelago Trading Services agreed to pay a $1.5 million penalty as part of a settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission for allegedly failing to file nearly 500 suspicious activity reports largely related to microcap or penny stock securities transactions.
More from Regulatory Enforcement
-
ArticleFTC suit against Uber gains traction with 21 states and DC joining in
The Federal Trade Commission allegations against Uber, alleging deceptive billing and subscription cancellations, have snowballed, with 21 states and the District of Columbia joining the lawsuit.
-
ArticleTop Ethics and Compliance Failures of 2025
The 2025 year has been so rich with compliance stinkers, and rife with poor judgment, compliance missteps, outright malfeasance and greed, greed, greed, that it was almost impossible to choose just six epic compliance failures from this year’s massive poop pile.
-
ArticleFATF focus on criminal asset recovery points to a more investigatory role for compliance
Global organised crime is booming, and only 1 to 2 percent of the $4 trillion black economy is intercepted, according to figures from the Financial Action Task Force. Its new guidance suggests that countries should focus on rapid investigations, collaborative intelligence gathering, and confiscating the proceeds of criminal activity.