Guaranty Trust Bank UK Limited
(GTBank UK) has reached settlement with the FCA, accepting findings in relation
to historical Anti-Money Laundering (AML) controls in its operations in the
period October 2014 to July 2019.
The Bank has cooperated fully with
the FCA investigation and has agreed on a penalty sum of GBP7,671,800, which has
been calculated by reference to a proportion of the revenues of GTBank UK over
the relevant period and includes a 30% discount for early settlement.
The FCA’s investigation focused on GTBank UK’s AML controls and steps taken by GTBank UK to remediate these to ensure they operated in line with the relevant requirements. The findings are final, and no further action is anticipated in respect of this matter. The FCA acknowledged in its findings that GTBank UK has spent considerable time and resources in order to bring its AML standards up to the required level.
Commenting
on the issue, Managing Director of GTBank UK, Mr. Gbenga Alade, said: “As a
responsible financial services institution that is committed to best practices,
GTBank UK takes its AML obligations extremely seriously. We note with sincere
regret the FCA’s findings regarding AML control gaps in our operations in the
past and we are very sorry for this.”
He
further stated; “We would like to assure all our stakeholders and the general
public that necessary steps have been taken to address and resolve the
identified gaps. Whilst there was no direct customer impairment arising from
the period under review [and the FCA’s findings do not include any instances of
suspected money laundering], we have since reinforced our AML control framework
and implemented changes in our AML processes in line with best practice with a
view to ensuring that the highest standards are maintained in our operations.”
The
Guaranty Trust Banking Group, including GTBank UK, is fully committed to the
fight against all forms of financial crime and to continuing to meet all
applicable financial crime regulations and legislation globally. Our AML policies
and controls, together with our overall risk management strategy, are regularly
reviewed and revised to ensure that they remain relevant and current in line
with the evolving regulatory requirements.
Media enquiries: [email protected]
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