Mega International Commercial Bank Fined $180m for AML Violations

Taiwan is reported to be investigating whether Mega Financial Holding Co and its banking unit, Mega International Commercial Bank, have broken local criminal laws, according to Reuters today, after New York authorities imposed upon Mega International Commercial Bank a $180 million fine for anti-money laundering violations.

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Suspect Transaction

This is the first time in years that a Taiwan-based financial institution has been penalised by U.S. authorities for allegedly failing to report a 'suspect transaction'. The New York state's financial regulator said the anti-money laundering violations also included lax attention to risk exposure in Panama.

Although the company's chairman claimed the bank did not help customers launder money overseas, the allegations come as money laundering controls at China's banks face increasing global scrutiny after a series of high-profile judicial investigations and regulatory probes in the United States and Europe.

According to Reuters, authorities are currently examining documents from both Mega Financial and its banking unit as part of the investigation, and are also reviewing information from the island's finance ministry and Financial Supervisory Commission to establish whether there has been any violation of criminal law in Taiwan.

Further Violations

Mega International Commercial Bank is one of Taiwan's largest banks by asset size and is viewed by analysts as a well-connected financial group with its head appointed by the government.

Last year the U.S. Federal Reserve called on both Bank of China and China Construction Bank to improve their Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Anti-money laundering (AML) is a term that describes laws, processes, and regulations that are intended to prevent illegally obtained funds from being disguised as income gained through legitimate means. The fundamental purpose of the AML laws is to help safeguard, detect, and report suspicious activity including the predicate offenses to money laundering and terrorist financing, such as securities fraud and market manipulation.Most exchanges have AML measures that include identity verification Anti-money laundering (AML) is a term that describes laws, processes, and regulations that are intended to prevent illegally obtained funds from being disguised as income gained through legitimate means. The fundamental purpose of the AML laws is to help safeguard, detect, and report suspicious activity including the predicate offenses to money laundering and terrorist financing, such as securities fraud and market manipulation.Most exchanges have AML measures that include identity verification Read this Term) procedures.

As a result of the crackdown, many Chinese banks have focused on improving their Risk Management Risk Management One of the most common terms utilized by brokers, risk management refers to the practice of identifying potential risks in advance. Most commonly, this also involves the analysis of risk and the undertaking of precautionary steps to both mitigate and prevent for such risk.Such efforts are essential for brokers and venues in the finance industry, given the potential for fallout in the face of unforeseen events or crises. Given a more tightly regulated environment across nearly every asset class, One of the most common terms utilized by brokers, risk management refers to the practice of identifying potential risks in advance. Most commonly, this also involves the analysis of risk and the undertaking of precautionary steps to both mitigate and prevent for such risk.Such efforts are essential for brokers and venues in the finance industry, given the potential for fallout in the face of unforeseen events or crises. Given a more tightly regulated environment across nearly every asset class, Read this Term and compliance controls.