Financial IT’s Post

🚨 FCA fines Starling Bank £29M for financial crime failings 🚨 The FCA has fined Starling Bank Limited £28,959,426 due to issues with its financial sanctions screening and repeatedly breaching a restriction not to open accounts for high-risk customers. This is a perfect example of "growth tunnel vision", where companies neglect the importance of strong legal and compliance functions. Robust compliance isn't just about avoiding fines — it's key to a company’s reputation, particularly when you are asking consumers to trust you with their money. #Compliance #FinancialCrime #Regulation #Legal #RiskManagement #Banking

Organisations Brace Themselves as Government Clamps Down on Financial Crime. Read the full blog: https://lnkd.in/dD8_BdqU #fintech #finance #FinancialIT #fincrime #AML #KYC #riskmanagement

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) remains committed to investigating misconduct in the financial sector, promising to tackle challenging and complex cases. According to Therese Chambers from the FCA, we can expect a more significant impact from their enforcement efforts moving forward. https://lnkd.in/e_xy4XAm In recent news, the FCA imposed a hefty £29 million fine for financial crime failings. Despite Starling Bank's impressive growth from 43,000 customers in 2017 to 3.6 million in 2023, their measures to combat financial crime did not keep pace with this expansion. https://lnkd.in/eA5HNKZu The question arises: How long can one skirt regulatory requirements before facing consequences? It's evident that compliance is crucial, and organisations must prioritise staying ahead of the curve to avoid penalties and maintain trust in the financial ecosystem.

This is a perfect example of why Financial Compliance is of utmost importance. We request all our clients, FinTech and MSB companies to follow FCA and HMRC guidelines towards Customer Due Diligence. This will ensure safeguarding of your business and customers. https://lnkd.in/dZqvKkYh #london #compliance #aml #sanctionsscreening #pep #fca #hmrc #starling #fcafine #penalty #regulatoryaction

A significant reminder of the critical importance of robust financial crime controls in the banking sector. Today, the FCA fined Starling Bank £29m for major failings in its financial sanctions screening and opening accounts for high-risk customers, despite agreed restrictions. While the fine was reduced for cooperation, the systemic issues highlighted here demonstrate the need for constant vigilance How can financial institutions ensure effective and timely enforcement of controls to mitigate such risks? https://lnkd.in/e-CxG2hu #FinancialCrime #RiskManagement #Banking #AML #Sanctions

📢 FCA fines Starling Bank £29m for financial crime systems and controls failings ◼ The Financial Conduct Authority's £29m fine on Starling Bank for inadequate financial crime controls serves as a stark reminder of the critical need for robust compliance systems within financial institutions.   ◼ Starling grew quickly – from approximately 43,000 customers in 2017 to 3.6 million in 2023 – however, the FCA found that measures at the challenger bank to tackle financial crime did not keep pace with its growth.   ◼ The FCA's decision highlights the importance of continuous monitoring and updating of due diligence and screening processes and underlines the lesson that firms must invest in effective risk management to prevent financial crime. https://lnkd.in/eKEDCS88  

The FCA has fined Starling Bank Limited £28,959,426 for financial crime failings related to its economic sanctions screening. It also repeatedly breached a requirement not to open accounts for high-risk customers. #economiccrime #financialinstitutions #financialcrime #duediligence #antimoneylaundering #antibribery #complianceofficers #boardofdirectors #sanctions https://lnkd.in/eqT9hnfp

MENA FCCG Contributes to Article on Trade Finance Global (TFG) The article titled “Navigating trade-based financial crime: Impact of UCP 600 and ISBP 821E articles” was published by TFG on June 4th 2024. The article is co-authored by Michael Matossian, MENA FCCG Founder and Deputy Chair and Amjad Batayneh, MENA FCCG CTBFC Working Group Member. The article seeks to shed light on the interplay between combating Trade-Based Financial Crime (TBFC) and the guidelines established by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) to standardize documentary credit processes including the Practice for Documentary Credits (UCP) and International Standard Banking Practice (ISBP). As financial institutions seek to ensure compliance with international ICC guidelines while combating TBFC, they face an array of challenges that the article has served to shed light on. These include lack of standardized trade documentation, presence of “Documents accepted as presented” in trade transactions, as well as the limited recognition and acceptance of Sanctions Clauses as a means for organizations to protect against sanctions violations. Visit MENA FCCG www.menafccg.com to read full article.

Will Britain reduce its anti-money laundering checks following Brexit? Not quite. >> https://lnkd.in/dB9vWBPx #business #finance #bank #account #aml #whitecollarcrime #financialcrime #uk #london #lawfirm #lawyer #ghersonsolicitorsllp #ghersonllp

💷 Starling Bank fined by FCA, they failed to meet regulatory obligations on financial crime risk. But... 🤔 Why these gaps were not identified during annual audits? ⚖️ Was Bank not scared of regulations and by not meeting comes heavy fines, reputational damage and also enforcement for a period that impact revenues 🙊 🙈 🙉 Seems like warning were either ignored or never taken seriously 💡Interesting how FCA have managed to come to conclusion in 14months, massive improvements by regulator! All banks should take this as warning, regulators are closing in. #aml #amlfines # #amlrisk #starlingbank