Bank Affiliates at TD, PNC, Santander and More Hit With OCC Enforcement Actions After Banks Suffer $1,000,000 in Losses

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) is dishing out enforcement actions against major US banks and their institution-affiliated parties (IAPs).

In a new press release, the OCC lists First National Bank and Trust Company, PNC Bank, JPMorgan Chase Bank, TD Bank, Santander and more as institutions with IAPs, mostly bank tellers, who have acted illegally and forced the OCC’s hand.

“The OCC uses enforcement actions against an institution-affiliated party (IAP) to deter, encourage correction of, or prevent violations, unsafe or unsound practices, or breaches of fiduciary duty. Enforcement actions against IAPs reinforce the accountability of individuals for their conduct regarding the affairs of a bank. The term ‘institution-affiliated party,’ or IAP, is defined in 12 USC 1813(u) and includes bank directors, officers, employees, and controlling shareholders.”

In total, the OCC list adds up to over $1 million in losses between all banks and all IAPs.

In the same release, the OCC also announced the termination of enforcement actions against Anchorage Digital Bank, a US-based crypto-first bank.

“WHEREAS, to assure the safety and soundness of Anchorage Digital Bank, National Association, Sioux Falls, South Dakota (‘Bank’) and its compliance with laws and regulations, and after obtaining the Bank’s consent through its duly elected and acting Board of Directors, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (‘OCC’) issued, through the duly authorized representative of the Comptroller of the Currency (‘Comptroller’) a Consent Order against the Bank dated April 21, 2022, AA-ENF-2022-7 (‘Order’); and WHEREAS, the OCC believes that the safety and soundness of the Bank and its compliance with laws and regulations does not require the continued existence of the Order.

NOW, THEREFORE, the OCC, through the duly authorized representative of the Comptroller, directs that the Order be, and it hereby is, TERMINATED.”

Anchorage was ordered by the OCC to improve its controls around client due diligence, monitoring suspicious customer activity and other anti-money-laundering measures in 2022.

In the banking regulator’s consent order, the OCC said Anchorage violated the Bank Secrecy Act, which covers anti-money laundering requirements and reporting.

At the time, Anchorage said it had “already been working to strengthen the areas identified and will continue to bolster these areas, reinforcing a new, digital asset standard” to combat money laundering. Anchorage remains under the consent order.