The U.S. Federal Reserve (Fed) on Wednesday gave Deutsche Bank a $186 million loan, accusing bank regulators of being too slow to fix problems with money laundering regulations at Deutsche Bank in 2015 and 2017. fined.
In a statement, the Fed said it had “made insufficient remedial progress” in complying with those orders that Deutsche Bank had agreed to.
In fining the bank, the Fed issued a new order asking Germany to “prioritize completion” of the controls it would have put in place in an earlier order.
The central bank said the move was necessary, although some progress had been made in introducing better controls. it was “exposed” When it comes to detecting money laundering and violations of U.S. sanctions, he said, “the level of compliance risk is increasing.”
German, in the statementsaid the Fed’s actions were related to “historic delays in complying with older enforcement actions and agreements.” But the bank said it had taken steps to tighten money laundering controls, including adding employees to its financial crime-fighting team.
Germany has a history of trouble with regulators and prosecutors. Over the past decade, the bank has faced a number of sanctions, paying hefty fines for failing to crack down on money laundering and allegedly enabling tax violations, price fixing and foreign bribery. rice field. In 2017, the bank reached a $7.2 billion civil settlement with federal prosecutors for selling harmful mortgage products ahead of the 2008 financial crisis. The bank also paid a $150 million fine to New York banking regulators in 2020, in part over its banking ties with disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein.
The 2015 and 2017 Fed orders stem from Germany’s relationship with Danske Bank’s Estonian branch, which has also clashed with the authorities.
Banking regulators have found that Deutsche Bank failed to adequately monitor transactions involving high-risk customers in its transactions with Danske Bank. Deutsche suspended transactions with Danske’s Estonian branch in 2015.
Last year Dansk, Denmark’s largest bank, pleaded guilty to charges stemming from a lengthy money laundering investigation. The bank also agreed to pay $2 billion in damages.
