The Monetary Authority of Singapore recently accomplished on-site inspections of a few of the banks involved within the case. Lenders that had essentially the most contact with criminals – through deposit accounts, loans and other financial services – are expected to face fines and other punitive measures from the financial watchdog once the review is accomplished, some people said.
Assets confiscated by authorities included money, gold bars, jewelry, cars, and residential and business properties. All 10 defendants pleaded guilty and nine of them were sentenced to prison terms of 13 to 16 months. The last of them might be sentenced on Monday. Another 17 persons are under investigation and remain at large.
The Monetary Authority of Singapore inspected the premises of several banks and interviewed employees to discover potential lapses in compliance controls. Court documents show that banks linked to the case did greater than just accept deposits: a few of them provided mortgage loans to the criminals’ locally registered businesses or helped them with investments.
The financial watchdog has also asked banks unrelated to the case to have their know-your-customer measures reviewed by external consultants, in keeping with some people aware of the matter.
The 10 convicted individuals were linked to accounts at 16 financial institutions operating in Singapore that held deposits and investments value greater than A$370 million. The banks that held essentially the most assets were Credit Suisse, the local unit of Citigroup and United Overseas Bank Ltd.
“Citi provides regular training to all employees on a variety of topics, including anti-money laundering,” the bank said. “We are committed to ensuring that our employees are informed about emerging threats and potential issues to better serve our customers.”
According to public opinion, DBS can be among the many banks which might be tightening their verification processes for major transactions made by customers. The country’s largest bank had exposure to roughly AUD 100 million, mainly from financing real estate purchases.
DBS said in a press release that its anti-money laundering processes are evolving to maintain pace with changes in the best way criminals operate, in addition to regulatory and industry changes.
“Criminals will adapt their behavior now that their methods have been discovered, so we are going to have to proceed to take into consideration stay one step ahead,” it said.
Fujian gang
Several former Citi clients were amongst those found guilty of cash laundering. They belonged to the so-called Fujian gang because all of the defendants are from a province in southeastern China.
OCBC has implemented several measures, including improving its risk assessment methodology and source of wealth review processes, said Loretta Yuen, the bank’s chief legal and compliance officer.
“As part of our ongoing monitoring of customer activity, we are already engaging customers to ask for and consider explanations of any suspicious behavior before taking further action,” she said.
Some bankers bristled on the added scrutiny. Some people argue that these safeguards are merely an answer that won’t help reduce Singapore’s exposure to money laundering. Banks not involved within the case had just a couple of months to rent an out of doors reviewer, they are saying.
Bankers also complained about additional checks on the sources of latest customers’ funds and extra challenges in monitoring accounts, in keeping with some people.
Interviews and knowledge contained in suspicious transaction reports filed by financial institutions helped alert police to illegal activities in a recent money laundering case, the Monetary Authority of Singapore found last yr.
