Skip to content

Exception Tracking Spreadsheet (TicklerTrax™)
Downloaded by more than 1,000 bankers. Free Excel spreadsheet to help you track missing and expiring documents for credit and loans, deposits, trusts, and more. Visualize your exception data in interactive charts and graphs. Provided by bank technology vendor, AccuSystems. Download TicklerTrax for free.

Click Now!


Top Story Security Related

02/01/2024

NCUA bars former Virginia CU employee from industry

The NCUA has reported it has issued a consent prohibition notice against Kelly Givens, a former employee of FedStar Federal Credit Union, Salem, Virginia, after determining that she made unauthorized personal purchases using the Credit Union’s corporate credit card and caused the Credit Union to pay the card balances.

A prohibition order bars its recipient from participating in any way in the business of any insured depository institution or federal depository institution regulatory agency or the Federal Housing Finance Agency or any federal home loan bank without prior written consent of both the NCUA Board and the institution's appropriate regulatory agency.

02/01/2024

FinCEN fines former CU BSA officer and bans him for five years

FinCEN has announced it has assessed a $100,000 civil money penalty on Gyanendra Kumar Asre for willful violations of the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) and its implementing regulations. FinCEN’s action also imposes a five-year ban on Asre’s participation in the conduct of the affairs of any financial institution subject to the BSA.

Asre admitted to willfully violating the BSA. He failed to register his money services business (MSB) with FinCEN and, in his capacity as the BSA Compliance Officer of a credit union, failed to maintain an effective AML program and failed to detect and report suspicious transactions. During Asre’s tenure as BSA Compliance Officer, the credit union’s risk profile drastically increased, including by providing services to Asre’s unregistered MSB. Despite these elevated risks, Asre failed to implement adequate AML controls. As a result, hundreds of millions of dollars in high-risk and suspicious funds—including substantial bulk cash deposits—moved through the credit union without proper monitoring or reporting to FinCEN.

A Justice Department press release reported Asre has pleaded guilty to "failure to maintain an anti-money laundering program in violation of the Bank Secrecy Act as part of a scheme to bring lucrative and high-risk international financial business to a small, unsophisticated credit union." He is scheduled to be sentenced on May 3.

02/01/2024

Treasury announces three OFAC actions

On Wednesday, January 31, 2024, the Department of the Treasury announced three OFAC actions.

  • Sanctioning of Iranian IRGC-QF and Hizballah Financial Network: OFAC sanctioned three entities — Mira Ihracat Ithalat Petrol, Yara Offshore SAL, and Hydro Company for Drilling Equipment Rental — and one individual — Ibrahim Talal al-Uwayr — located in Lebanon and Türkiye for providing critical financial support to an Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force (IRGC-QF) and Hizballah financial network.
  • Sanctioning of three entities — Alkhaleej Bank Co Ltd., Zadna International Co for Development Ltd., and Al-Fakher Advanced Works Co. Ltd. — for their role in undermining the peace, security, and stability of Sudan.
  • Designation of two entities closely associated with Burma’s military regime — the Shwe Byain Phyu Group of Companies and Myanma Five Star Line Company Limited — and four cronies — Tin Latt Min, Theint Win Htet, Win Paing Kyaw, and Thein Win Zaw,

For identification information on the entities and individuals designated in the three OFAC actions, see BankersOnline's January 31, 2023, OFAC Update.

01/31/2024

Treasury designates ISIS cyber facilitators and trainers

Yesterday, the Treasury Department reported that OFAC designated two cybersecurity experts — Mu’min Al-Mawji Mahmud Salim and Sarah Jamal Muhammad Al-Sayyid — affiliated with the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) for providing ISIS leadership and supporters with cybersecurity training, enabling their use of virtual currency, and supporting the terrorist group’s recruitment. Additionally, OFAC designated Faruk Guzel, an ISIS financial facilitator involved in transferring funds to ISIS-affiliated individuals in Syria.

For identification information on the three designated individuals, see BankersOnline's January 30, 2024, OFAC Update.

01/30/2024

FinCEN identifies Iraqi bank as institution of primary money laundering concern

On January 29, 2024, FinCEN announced it had issued a finding and notice of proposed rulemaking that identifies Al-Huda Bank, an Iraqi bank that serves as a conduit for terrorist financing, as a foreign financial institution of primary money laundering concern. Along with its finding, FinCEN proposed imposing a special measure that would sever the bank from the U.S. financial system by prohibiting domestic financial institutions and agencies from opening or maintaining a correspondent account for or on behalf of Al-Huda Bank.

UPDATED: Comments on the notice of proposed rulemaking will be accepted for 30 days (through March 1, 2024) following its January 31, 2024. publication at 89 FR 6074 in the Federal Register.

In a coordinated action, OFAC designated Hamad al-Moussawi, owner and chairman of Al-Huda Bank, for having materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, the IRGC-QF. His identifying information can be found in this BankersOnline OFAC Update.

01/30/2024

FinCEN seeks comment on info to be collected to get BOI data response

FinCEN has published [89 FR 5995] in the January 30, 2024, Federal Register a Notice and Request for Comments on the proposed information collection associated with requests made to FinCEN, by certain persons, for beneficial ownership information, consistent with the requirements of the Beneficial Ownership Information Access and Safeguards final rule.

Included in the notice are FinCEN's estimates of the burden to state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies, and for financial institutions. An appendix to the Notice and Request for Comments summarizes the proposed data fields to be submitted by authorized recipients. Financial institutions would submit the reporting company name, TIN type, and TIN, and a check mark agreeing to a system-provided certification of compliance statement.

Comments will be accepted through April 1, 2024.

Note: This proposal does not in any way change the current rule in 31 C.F.R. § 1010.230 requiring financial institutions to obtain certification of beneficial ownership information from its customers. Amendments to that rule are not expected until at least the end of 2024.

01/29/2024

U.S. and UK target Iranian transnational assassinations network

The Treasury Department has reported the OFAC and the United Kingdom have taken joint action against a network of individuals that targeted Iranian dissidents and opposition activists for assassination at the direction of the Iranian regime. The network is led by Iranian narcotics trafficker Naji Ibrahim Sharifi-Zindashti (Zindashti) and operates at the behest of Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS). Treasury reports that Zindashti’s network has carried out numerous acts of transnational repression including assassinations and kidnappings across multiple jurisdictions in an attempt to silence the Iranian regime’s perceived critics. The network has also plotted operations in the United States.

For identification information on the targeted individuals, see this BankersOnline's OFAC Update.

01/26/2024

U.S. and UK target Houthi military officials

The Treasury Department reported yesterday that OFAC has imposed sanctions on key officials of the forces of Ansarallah, commonly known as the Houthis, for their support of acts of terrorism targeting commercial shipping. Yesterday’s action targets four individuals who have supported the Houthis’ recent attacks against commercial vessels in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, including holding civilian crews hostage. Concurrent with OFAC’s designations, the United Kingdom also imposed sanctions on these key figures of Houthi forces.

For the names and identification information of the four individuals, see yesterday's BankersOnline OFAC Update.

01/26/2024

FRB Financial Services adds ACH risk management service

Federal Reserve Financial Services has announced its launch of FedDetect Anomaly Notification for FedACH Services, a new risk management service that helps financial institutions identify anomalous activity and supplement their fraud detection and alerting tools. This new addition to FedACH Risk Management Services allows financial institutions to receive notifications via secure email when anomalous FedACH activity is detected.

The new service can help financial institutions catch potential fraud attempts with account verification through micro-entry return and forward-entry monitoring. It can also help originating financial institutions adhere to Nacha rules around notifications of change and avoid future rule violations.

01/25/2024

FinCEN adjusts CMP caps

This morning, FinCEN published [89 FR 4820] a final rule to reflect inflation adjustments to its civil monetary penalties as mandated by the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act of 1990, as amended. This rule adjusts certain maximum civil monetary penalties within the jurisdiction of FinCEN to the amounts required by that Act.

The rule amends 31 CFR 1010.821 and is effective today.

Pages

Training View All

Penalties View All

Search Top Stories