The Financial Times reports that the London-based bank added Stevenson Munro to head up its sanctions compliance and David Clark to lead surveillance analysis of its financial crime compliance division. Clark and Munro were previously at General Electric. Munro served as the former financial crime compliance leader at GE Capital.

This renewed focus on the bank’s financial crimes unit comes at a time when several U.S. watchdogs are investigating whether the Standard Chartered concealed transactions after violating international sanctions on transactions with Burma, Sudan, Libya and Iran. 

The bank gathered names from customers in these countries and switched them with special characters so other financial institutions cannot track the flow of money relating to these hidden transactions between 2001 and 2007. The bank was accused by Benjamin Lawsky, head of the New York Department of Financial Services of aiding Iran in laundering about $250 billion. The bank is also produced false records and managed the wire transfers in the U.S. 

Last week, Standard Chartered Chief Executive Officer Bill Winters said that the bank is “working through a legacy of a focus on growth over risk discipline and returns together with an ongoing emerging markets slowdown.” Moreover, in its ffirst-half results last Wednesday, the bank said, “There is a range of potential penalties for sanctions compliance violations, which could ultimately include substantial monetary penalties, additional compliance and remediation requirements and/or additional business restrictions.”

In 2012, the major global bank said it thoroughly reviewed its protocols to comply with sanctions. “In the more than five years since the events…the bank has completed a comprehensive review and upgrade of its compliance systems and procedures,” it said in a statement.

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