Singapore monetary authority penalizes 9 banks, institutions for 2023 money laundering case

The Monetary Authority of Singapore penalised six banks and 3 different fiscal institutions a full of S$27.45 cardinal ($21.5 million) connected Friday successful narration to the country's biggest ever wealth laundering ungraded successful 2023.

The lawsuit progressive much than S$3 cardinal ($2.2 billion) successful illicit assets seized aft 10 foreigners were busted successful a bid of simultaneous raids successful August 2023.

The full punishment is conscionable shy of the S$29.1 cardinal successful fiscal penalties meted retired to 8 banks successful a lawsuit involving Malaysia's 1MDB successful 2017.

The banks progressive — Credit Suisse, UOB, UBS, Citibank, Julius Baer and LGT Bank — were each penalised betwixt S$1million and S$5.8 million.

Brokerage steadfast UOB Kay Hian, plus absorption steadfast Blue Ocean Invest and spot and money services institution Trident Trust Company Singapore were besides penalised S$2.85 million, S$2.4 cardinal and S$1.8 cardinal respectively.

The penalties people the decision of MAS's enforcement actions against fiscal institutions.

The 10 convicted wealth launderers were sentenced to jailhouse presumption of betwixt 13 and 17 months successful the nation's largest lawsuit of its kind. They were deported and barred from re-entering Singapore aft completing their sentences.

The criminals held wealth gained from overseas scams and online gambling operations successful slope accounts successful Singapore, and converted immoderate of their currency into existent estate, cars, handbags and jewellery.

MAS said it has identified shortcomings successful the fiscal institutions' lawsuit hazard assessments, their tracing of the sources of customers' wealthiness arsenic good arsenic their quality to show and travel up connected suspicious transactions.

"The fiscal institutions person embarked connected remediation of the deficiencies and MAS volition show their advancement closely," it said.

Four radical were besides issued prohibition orders preventing them from carrying retired MAS-regulated activities.

In effect to media queries, UOB said that it has implemented punctual remedial actions implicit the past 2 years and committed important investments to heighten its interior hazard absorption standards and capabilities further.

UBS, which agreed to instrumentality implicit Credit Suisse successful March 2023, said that it acknowledged the findings and has cooperated afloat with authorities to resoluteness the issue.

Blue Ocean Invest said that the institution has afloat cooperated with the authorities and has implemented measures to heighten interior policies and procedures.

A Trident Trust Company spokesperson besides said it has cooperated with MAS's inspection and implemented a remediation program to code breaches.

Citibank, UOB Kay Hian, Julius Baer and LGT Bank did not instantly respond to a petition for comment.

In August past year, Singapore charged 2 ex-bankers from Citi and Julius Baer for forging indebtedness and taxation documents for the wealth launderers.

Singapore has besides sought to marque it easier for instrumentality enforcement to prosecute wealth laundering offences successful the city-state.

In June 2024, the authorities identified Singapore's banking assemblage arsenic posing the highest wealth laundering hazard successful the city-state.