OCC Fines American Express National Bank $350 Million Over AML Failures
Federal regulators hit American Express National Bank with a $350M penalty and cease-and-desist order for Bank Secrecy Act compliance failures.
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency imposed a $350 million civil money penalty against American Express National Bank, headquartered in Sandy, Utah, citing significant deficiencies in the institution's anti-money laundering compliance program, the agency announced.
Alongside the monetary penalty, the OCC issued a cease-and-desist order against the bank, a formal enforcement mechanism that compels the institution to correct the identified deficiencies and submit to heightened regulatory oversight until compliance standards are met.
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The enforcement action centers on violations of the Bank Secrecy Act, the cornerstone federal law requiring financial institutions to maintain robust programs designed to detect and report suspicious activity, prevent money laundering, and assist law enforcement in identifying illicit financial flows.
The dual action — a financial penalty combined with a cease-and-desist order — signals a serious regulatory assessment of the bank's compliance failures, as the OCC typically reserves such combined measures for cases where internal controls are deemed materially deficient. American Express National Bank operates as the federally chartered banking subsidiary within the broader American Express financial network.
Continue reading at OCC News.
