Business
14:10, 29-Dec-2018
HK regulator fines JPMorgan HK branch over anti-money laundering lapses
Updated
13:02, 01-Jan-2019
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The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) said on Friday that it had fined the Hong Kong branch of JPMorgan Chase & Co. 12.5 million HK dollars (1.60 million U.S. dollars) and reprimanded it for breaching anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing rules.
The regulator said that the firm failed to “establish and maintain effective procedures” for identifying and handling wire transfers and for complying with rules on customer due diligence and “continuous monitoring” of business relationships.
The HKMA also ordered the Hong Kong unit of the U.S. bank to have an independent external adviser prepare a report into whether its remedial measures were sufficient to address the “contraventions and other deficiencies” it had identified.
The action follows an investigation by the HKMA which found that between April 2012 and February 2014 JPMorgan Hong Kong contravened six provisions of the anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing rules, the regulator said.
The HKMA statement said that JPMorgan Hong Kong had self-identified and reported certain deficiencies, and had taken “positive and extensive remediation work” after it became aware of the lapses.
“In particular, it has enhanced its control functions to prevent similar contraventions from recurring,” it said.
Source(s): Reuters