The source |TD Bank imposed record $3 billion fine over drug cartel money laundering claims

Are you a TD Bank account holder? If so, your bank just got fined for real paper. TD Bank has agreed to pay $3 billion to settle charges related to its failure to adequately monitor money laundering by drug cartels. The settlement includes a $1.3 billion fine to the U.S. Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), a record fine for a bank, and $1.8 billion to the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) . The bank will plead guilty to violating the Bank Secrecy Act.

The DOJ identified “longstanding, pervasive and systemic deficiencies” in TD’s anti-money laundering procedures. Between January 2018 and April 2024, more than 90% of TD Bank’s transactions went unaudited, laundering more than $670 million in money through its accounts through three separate networks. Attorney General Merrick Garland criticized the bank for making its services “easy for criminals.” Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo added that TD Bank prioritized growth and profits over regulatory compliance, enabling drug trafficking that harmed American citizens.

See, in one case, TD employees used more than $57,000 in gift cards to process $470 million in suspicious cash deposits without reporting them. The Office of the Comptroller of the Coin (OCC) stated that the bank processed hundreds of millions in transactions that clearly indicated illegal activity. The OCC restricted TD Bank’s growth in the US as part of the settlement, a rare move previously seen at Wells Fargo after the 2018 scandal.

TD Bank CEO Bharat Masrani acknowledged the failures, apologized and vowed to strengthen the bank’s anti-money laundering capabilities. The bank is hiring more than 700 specialists and implementing new processes to improve its financial crime prevention efforts. As part of the agreement, FinCEN will monitor TD Bank for four years to ensure compliance.

Additionally, TD Bank shares fell 6% after the announcement, and the company expects to take a $1.5 billion after-tax charge as a result. The settlement has drawn criticism from figures such as Senator Elizabeth Warren, who argued that the penalties do not go far enough to hold bank executives accountable. TD Bank has faced legal challenges before, including a $1.2 billion settlement last year over its involvement in a Ponzi scheme, although the bank denied wrongdoing in that case.