American Express fined US$350 million for insufficient anti-money laundering programme
WASHINGTON: American Express was fined US$350 million by US bank regulators after they determined that the lender’s programmes to identify potential money laundering were insufficient and the company had potentially missed billions of dollars in suspicious activity.
The US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the Federal Reserve imposed a US$350 million fine on American Express following an assessment that the financial institution's anti-money laundering programs were inadequate. The regulators claimed the company potentially overlooked billions of dollars in suspicious activity. American Express, through its national bank, allegedly lacked sufficient resources, inexperienced staff, weak training, and gaps in internal controls, leading to systemic breakdowns in monitoring and reporting.
The regulators emphasized that banks of American Express's size and complexity must allocate adequate resources to ensure compliance with anti-money laundering laws and regulations. Comptroller of the Currency Jonathan Gould pointed out that American Express had prioritized risks in its deposit products while neglecting its larger credit card business. The regulator also found shortcomings in customer due diligence and identification programs.
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