The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has imposed a fine of £ 7671800 on the bank Guaranty Trust Bank (UK) Limited (GT Bank) due to serious deficiencies in its anti money laundering (AML) system and controls between October 2014 and July 2019.

During the above period, GT Bank failed to conduct sufficient customer risk assessments and often did not assess and document potential money laundering risks for customers.

The bank also failed to monitor customers' transactions and business relationships according to prescribed standards.

FCA and other internal and external institutions have repeatedly emphasized these deficiencies to GT Bank, but the bank has not yet taken appropriate action to address these issues.

Since 2018, GT Bank has stopped accepting new customers. Later in the same year, due to concerns from FCA, GT Bank agreed to impose broader voluntary restrictions on its business. It was not until mid-2021 that the bank completed a remediation plan and passed an independent third-party inspection that the relevant restrictions were lifted.

GT Bank's behavior is particularly harsh as this is not the first time the bank has been subjected to enforcement actions related to AML control. In August 2013, FCA fined GT Bank £ 525000 for serious systemic errors.

The FCA requires companies to implement effective anti money laundering control measures to reduce the risk of individuals and organizations using financial institutions and prevent them from making illegal profits.

Mark Steward, Executive Director of Law Enforcement and Market Supervision, stated: "After being punished in 2013, GT Bank should have taken swift action to implement sufficient AML control measures, but it failed to do so. GT Bank did not develop a plan to address its AML deficiencies, exposing the bank and market to long-term financial crime risks.

Companies must protect themselves and their clients from financial crime risks, especially money laundering risks. The FCA is committed to ensuring the safety, cleanliness, and credibility of the financial services market, establishing sound systems and control measures to curb financial crime. If regulatory standards are not met, the FCA will continue to take action

GT Bank did not raise any objections to the FCA's investigation results and agreed to a settlement, resulting in a 30% penalty discount. If there is no such discount, GT Bank will have to pay a fine of £ 10959700.