FSA fines Northern Bank £1.25m
The Financial Services Authority has fined Northern Bank £1.25m for breaching money-laundering rules.
Link: Bank uses elearning to tackle money laundering
Northern Bank, a Belfast-based operation owned by National Australia Bank, is alleged to have failed to take adequate steps to verify the identity of customers, particularly business clients.
Carol Sergeant, managing director of the FSA said: ‘The steps Northern Bank took to satisfy itself that its customers, particularly business customers, really were who they claimed to be, were inadequate. Northern Bank had previously identified weaknesses in their customer identification procedures but allowed them to persist.’
The fine is much larger than any fine previously imposed by the FSA for lax money laundering controls. The £1.25m compares with a £750,000 fine meted out to Royal Bank of Scotland in December last year.