U.S. sanctions Russia over SolarWinds hack
The Treasury Department announced sanctions against Russia implemented under an executive order from President Joe Biden in response to the SolarWinds hack and alleged election interference by the country.
Ponzi scheme mastermind Bernie Madoff dead at 82
Disgraced financier Bernie Madoff, whose decades-long fraud swindled thousands of investors out of billions of dollars, died in federal prison Wednesday.
Archegos collapse: $20 billion in losses, but a win for compliance
The collapse of Archegos Capital Management may go down as yet another episode that champions the importance of the voice of the compliance professional, writes Martin Woods.
Compliance lessons, regulatory fallout from Archegos meltdown
There are plenty of unanswered questions following the recent meltdown of family office Archegos Capital Management—and plenty of compliance lessons to be learned, writes Aaron Nicodemus.
Video: Deutsche Bank, Credit Suisse, and combining risk and compliance
Aly McDevitt and Kyle Brasseur assess changes in compliance and risk management functions at Deutsche Bank and Credit Suisse in light of recent scandals at each bank.
Credit Suisse compliance chief steps down in Archegos collapse aftermath
Credit Suisse Chief Risk and Compliance Officer Lara Warner has stepped down from her role and left the company following the bank’s loss of an estimated $4.7 billion due to the meltdown of hedge fund Archegos Capital Management.
Outgoing FinCEN head Kenneth Blanco to join Citi as financial crimes CCO
Kenneth Blanco has been tapped to lead a new financial crimes unit at Citi following his departure as director of the Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network later this week.
Robert Mazur: Old tricks still work for launderers; new policies could help
Former federal agent Robert Mazur revealed secrets of the money-laundering trade to attendees of CW’s Financial Crimes virtual event and proposed two solutions for financial institutions in the fight against bad actors.
Moody’s fined $4.4M for European conflict-of-interest violations
Five European subsidiaries of Moody’s Corp. have been fined a total of €3.7 million (U.S. $4.4 million) by the European Securities and Markets Authority for violating conflict-of-interest rules.
China, Russia to face more sanctions under Biden, experts say
Companies should prepare for more U.S. sanctions to be levied against China and Russia under the Biden administration, two former financial crime regulators predicted at Compliance Week’s Financial Crimes virtual event.
James Comey: Buckle up for dangerous post-pandemic risk landscape
Former FBI Director James Comey predicted a “time of extraordinary change” is ahead for the compliance profession in the post-pandemic world during a prerecorded video message at Compliance Week’s Financial Crimes virtual event.
Deutsche Bank restructures compliance amid leadership overhaul
Deutsche Bank announced a series of changes to its management board, including the upcoming departure of Chief Risk Officer Stuart Lewis and transition of compliance responsibilities to Chief Administrative Officer Stefan Simon.
Video: Goldman junior banker scandal puts Wall Street ethics in spotlight
Kyle Brasseur reviews the Goldman Sachs junior banker scandal and whether complaints of employee crunch on Wall Street can lead to change in working conditions.
Westpac considering New Zealand unit demerger amid risk review
Westpac is assessing a demerger from its New Zealand business after the Reserve Bank of New Zealand ordered the unit to commission two independent reports concerning the bank’s liquidity and risk governance processes.
Ex-GPB Capital CCO avoids prison in SEC theft case
A former SEC examiner who used insider information about an ongoing fraud investigation to obtain the chief compliance officer job with private equity firm GPB Capital has been sentenced to nine months of home confinement.
CFTC fines Coinbase $6.5M for inaccurate reporting, wash trading
Coinbase agreed to pay a $6.5 million civil penalty to settle charges from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission for reporting violations and improper trading activity by a former employee.
ABN AMRO facing new charges in money laundering probe
ABN AMRO is facing new charges from Dutch prosecutors that imply the bank is suspected of knowing of money laundering activities perpetrated by its customers without intervening.
NatWest facing criminal charges in landmark U.K. money laundering case
The U.K. Financial Conduct Authority has brought criminal proceedings against National Westminster Bank concerning alleged violations of the 2007 Money Laundering Regulations—a first for the regulator.
CFPB flips on Trump-era abusive acts stance
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau reversed a Trump administration policy on how it assesses and punishes abusive practices in the financial services industry.
CPE Webcast: Navigating financial regulations for third-party risk management
Today’s financial services industry operates in an environment characterized by significant regulatory scrutiny. To be compliant, organizations must be aware and adhere to regulations, guidelines, and industry standards as it relates to their vendors, suppliers and third parties.
NYDFS fines mortgage banker $1.5M for cyber-security violations
The New York State Department of Financial Services fined Residential Mortgage Services $1.5 million for violating New York’s cyber-security regulation.
Ex-undercover agent Robert Mazur to share first-person AML lessons at CW event
Robert Mazur, the famous undercover agent portrayed in the 2016 film “The Infiltrator,” will be the keynote speaker on Day 2 of Compliance Week’s upcoming financial crimes event, to be held virtually March 30-31.
Video: Google ad change a boon for privacy; red flags apparent in Greensill downfall
Aaron Nicodemus acknowledges Google’s decision to stop selling ads based on user browsing history as a good first step, while Kyle Brasseur laments apparent red flags ignored in the seemingly impending collapse of Greensill Capital.
Biden influence apparent in SEC 2021 examination priorities
The long-awaited 2021 examination priorities of the Securities and Exchange Commission were released Wednesday, with climate- and ESG-related risks unsurprisingly among areas that will receive enhanced focus.
SEC halt on ‘meme stocks’ just the beginning of GameStop fallout?
The SEC over the last month has suspended trading on securities offered by 21 companies in reaction to market volatility caused by “apparent social media attempts to artificially inflate their stock price.” Could the trend lead to further regulation?
Robinhood, FINRA discussing settlement over 2020 outages
Online stock-trading platform Robinhood said it may face at least $26.6 million in costs related to resolving investigations by FINRA concerning its options-trading practices and outages its platform suffered last year.
Banks filing more SARs amid pandemic; is this the right approach?
An increase in the submission of suspicious activity reports for cash values that fall under the mandatory $10,000 transaction reporting threshold last year is a proactive step by banks, but more can always be done, writes Martin Woods.
HSBC promotes group compliance chief to executive role
HSBC announced the promotion of Group Chief Compliance Officer Colin Bell to CEO of HSBC Europe and HSBC Bank amid a flurry of senior management changes.
BitPay fined $507K for digital currency sanctions violations
The Office of Foreign Assets Control reached a $507,375 settlement with digital currency platform BitPay for lapses in its sanctions compliance procedures that led to 2,102 apparent violations of multiple sanctions programs.
Done right, outsourcing compliance can be rewarding
Should you consider outsourcing some of your firm’s compliance functions? Perhaps, even, all of them? The answer is complicated and requires a thorough analysis of the risks and rewards.
CPE Webcast: Be prepared for regulatory expectations and evolving trends in 2021
Join an expert panel for an interactive discussion on what registered investment adviser firms can expect this year in terms of requirements targeted to the financial services industry under the Biden administration.
James Freis did the right thing at Wirecard … but why didn’t anyone else?
At the end of the sorry Wirecard saga, James Freis may be one of the very few former senior employees who can hold his head high, writes Martin Woods.
ACAMS survey: FinCEN Files leak a positive for financial industry?
Many compliance professionals in the financial industry believe last year’s leak of 2,100 suspicious activity reports from FinCEN had an overall positive impact on global efforts to fight financial crime, according to an ACAMS survey.
SEC requests independent monitor in GPB Capital case
The SEC has requested the appointment of an independent monitor to oversee GPB Capital Holdings amid allegations the asset management firm defrauded more than 17,000 retail investors in a “Ponzi-like” scheme.
FINRA report: Top risk areas for AML, cyber-security
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority has published a new report designed to help inform member firms’ compliance programs by providing annual insights from its examinations and risk monitoring programs.
Yellen, regulators say market withstood pressure from GameStop surge
A key meeting of regulators has determined the recent spike caused by Reddit users for normally tame stocks like GameStop and AMC Entertainment has not had a significant impact on the market, which Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen termed “resilient.”
SEC: GPB Capital operated ‘Ponzi-like’ scheme, retaliated against whistleblower
GPB Capital Holdings allegedly defrauded more than 17,000 retail investors in a Ponzi-like scheme, then attempted to impede an employee from blowing the whistle on the illegal practices, according to the SEC.
Goldman Sachs 1MDB fallout a case study for bonus risks
As Goldman Sachs cuts the pay of its top executives in response to more than $5 billion in penalties incurred for the 1MDB scandal, Martin Woods once again ponders whether bonuses helped facilitate the improper conduct that took place.
FDIC fines Apple Bank $12.5M for AML compliance failures
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation has fined Apple Bank for Savings $12.5 million for violations of the Bank Secrecy Act related to anti-money laundering controls.
Recently penalized USAA adds chief risk officer
USAA announced the appointment of Neeraj Singh as chief risk officer nearly four months after its federal savings bank was fined $85 million by the OCC for compliance risk management failures.
More Wirecard fallout: Top brass out at German finance regulator
Continuing fallout from the Wirecard scandal has led Germany’s finance minister to oust the top two officials at the country’s financial regulator, the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin).
NYDFS regulation a best-practices model for cyber-security training
Companies must make cyber-security a continuous priority as threats evolve, often more quickly than the technology and regulations to counter them. That’s why the New York Department of Financial Services, under Maria Vullo, developed a policy that should act as a model for organizations.
Video: Thumbs-down to all parties in GameStop madness
While Kyle Brasseur gives Data Privacy Day the shout-out it deserves, Dave Lefort explains why retail investors, the apps they use, and regulators all “Failed It” in the GameStop stock market craze.
Compliance lessons from GameStop market insanity
Wall Street has been consumed this week watching a real-time battle unfold between retail investors and hedge funds over formerly moribund stocks like GameStop, AMC Entertainment, and BlackBerry. The compliance lessons lie in the levels of risk.
A risk management perspective on GameStop stock surge
Actions taken by Robinhood and TD Ameritrade amid the crazy GameStop stock surge can be understood from the perspective of risk management, but who’s watching out for the retail investors? That’s where the real risks lie.
Treasury under Yellen to prioritize climate change, sanctions, AML reform
Janet Yellen takes over as leader of a Treasury Department with a lot on its plate, including studying the effects of climate change on the economy, unwinding Trump administration sanctions, revamping the Bank Secrecy Act, and more.
White paper: Reducing Cyber Risk for the Financial Service Industry
The financial services industry is a leading target for cyber criminals because there’s more than one way one way to profit from an attack.
Survey: KYC, risk profiling key problem areas for finance amid pandemic
A new survey by LexisNexis Risk Solutions examines the rising costs and emerging risk areas faced by compliance at U.S. and Canadian financial institutions amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Spanish DPA fines CaixaBank record $7.3M under GDPR
Spain’s data protection authority recently fined CaixaBank €6 million (U.S. $7.3 million) for misuse of customer data, the largest GDPR fine the country has handed out.
Video: Did Capital One get off easy with $390M AML fine?
Kyle Brasseur explains how Capital One’s $390 million civil penalty for anti-money laundering failures could have been much steeper had it not been for the bank’s significant remediation efforts.