ABN AMRO has reached a settlement of 480 million euros with the Public Prosecution Service (OM), because the bank failed to combat money laundering. “This concludes a painful and disappointing chapter in ABN AMRO’s history,” CEO Robert Swaak said Monday know. Due to the affair, former ABN CEO Gerrit Zalm has to stop as a supervisory director at Danske Bank.
For a long time, ABN AMRO was suspected of not having done enough to prevent money laundering. According to the Public Prosecution Service, for example, the bank fell short in the years 2014 to 2020 in, among other things, accepting customers and monitoring transaction processes.
“As a result, in certain cases clients have been able to abuse ABN AMRO accounts,” the bank writes.
Experts had long assumed that a hefty fine would probably follow. A few years ago, ING had to pay a fine of hundreds of millions of euros in a similar matter.
Three persons identified as suspects
The criminal investigation into former directors of ABN AMRO is still ongoing. In the meantime, the Public Prosecution Service has designated three persons as suspects, because they had a managerial position at the divisions of the bank that committed violations.
“As a bank, we have a legal, but also a moral duty to do our utmost to protect the financial system from abuse by criminals. of gatekeeper, “said Swaak.
“That is unacceptable and we take full responsibility for it.” The bank is now in the process of improving its anti-fraud processes and expects to have fully implemented the changes by the end of 2022.
The 480 million euros is charged to the result in the first quarter of this year. The bank therefore expects to record a “modest loss” for this period, late ABN AMRO know Monday.
Gerrit Zalm has to leave the Danish bank due to an affair
Due to the affair, various Dutch directors are losing their position at Danske Bank. For example, former ABN CEO and Minister of Finance Zalm must stop as a supervisory director.
The CEO of Danske Bank, former ABN director Peter Vogelzang, is also stepping down from his position. The Danish bank has that on Monday announced.
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