U.S. banking regulators have fined the USAA San Antonio Federal Savings Bank $140 million, alleging it failed to adequately monitor potential money laundering activity.
The Federal Financial Crime Network said in a statement that the bank did not report thousands of suspicious customer financial transactions, including some “use of personal accounts for apparent criminal activity.” Moreover, according to the regulator, the company did not comply with federal anti-money laundering regulations from 2016 to April last year.
“As the customer base and revenues have grown in recent years, the US FSB deliberately failed to enforce its compliance program, resulting in millions of dollars in suspicious transactions through the US financial system without proper reporting,” said Himauli Das, acting director of FinCEN. . “The US FSB also received sufficient notice and the opportunity to correct its inadequate [anti-money laundering] program, but repeatedly failed to do so.
Of the total fine, $60 million represents a fine imposed by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, which federal officials say is assessed by that agency for “collateral violations.”
USAA Bank is a subsidiary of San Antonio-based financial services giant USAA, which offers services to service members and their families. The firm is one of the city’s largest private employers.
In a statement provided to Express-News, USAA CEO Wayne Peacock said the bank has invested in new systems and training to track money laundering activities.
“While the issues identified in these orders did not result in harm to individual participants, we understand the importance of these requirements,” Peacock said.
Federal regulators have also penalized the USAA Federal Savings Bank twice since 2019 for alleged violations of banking laws.
In 2020, the OCC fined the facility $85 million for violating federal regulations, which it says constitute a “pattern of misconduct.” Last year, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau ordered the bank to pay fines and restitution totaling $15.5 million in connection with allegations of violating banking laws.
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