Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi Ordered By NY Regulators to Pay Another $315M in Penalties Over Transactions Involving Sanctioned Nations

The New York Department of Financial Services says that Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ must pay another $315 in penalties for misleading Benjamin M. Lawsky, the state’s Superintended of Financial Services, about transactions involving Iran, Myanmar, and Sudan. All three nations are subject to U.S. economic sanctions. The Japanese bank also agreed to take disciplinary action against three employees that allegedly took part in diluting a report submitted to Lawsky about the transactions.

One employee, who was a manager in the bank’s anti-money laundering compliance office, stepped down. The other two, who work in the compliance department, have been barred from conducting business with any financial institutions. As part of the settlement, Bank of Tokyo admitted to misleading the regulator.

Lawsky’s office fined the bank $250 million in a settlement last year over allegations that it had routed $100 billion of payments via 28,000 transactions involving the three countries through its New York office. The year before, Bank of Tokyo arrived at a separate agreement with the U.S. Department of Treasury for $8.6 million over allegedly 97 transfers valued at $5.9 million.

In August, a PriceWaterhouse Coopers LLP unit consented to a two-year suspension from consulting work and paying $25 million to resolve allegations that it improperly modified a report regarding Bank of Tokyo’s compliance with anti-money laundering laws.

Lawsky contends that bank executives pressured the PWC unit into modifying a report on its wire transfers for sanctioned nations and entities. He said that this allowed the bank to conceal its practice of taking out references made to these entities.

As part of the latest agreement, Bank of Tokyo will extend the term of an independent consultant, which was mandated under last year’s settlement. It also consented to move its unit tasked with sanctions and money laundering compliance to New York.

The SSEK Partners Group is an institutional investor fraud law firm. We represent institutional clients and high net worth individual investors.

Bank of Tokyo to Pay $315 Million to N.Y. Regulator, The Wall Street Journal, November 18, 2014

Lawsky Fines Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ Another $315 Million, NY Times, November 18, 2014

Bank of Tokyo to pay $250 million to N.Y. in money-laundering case, The Washington Post, June 20, 2013

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