Agencies of the U.S. Department of the Treasury imposed more than $1.21 billion in penalties on Bank of America for violating anti-money laundering obligations and sanctions rules.
The action was the third-largest enforcement measure in the Treasury Department's history and the largest monetary penalty ever imposed by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC).
FinCEN reviewed more than $5 billion in transactions
The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) determined that Bank of America failed to timely report suspicious transactions exceeding $5 billion. More than $1 billion of these transactions was linked to illicit finance risks prioritized for national security reasons.
The transactions under review included activity indicating Chinese-based money laundering networks, fraud, and possible trade-based money laundering operations linked to the U.S. southwestern border.
OCC found the transaction-monitoring system inadequate
The OCC determined that the bank's transaction-monitoring system failed to properly oversee transactions worth trillions of dollars. The system's deficiencies caused delays in numerous suspicious activity reports covering transactions worth billions of dollars.
FinCEN took action because Bank of America failed to fulfill its responsibilities to mitigate illicit finance risks prioritized for national security reasons and to report suspicious transactions. The OCC imposed penalties over deficiencies in the bank's compliance program.
$11.6 million settlement with OFAC
The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) reached an $11.6 million settlement with Bank of America over violations of multiple sanctions programs, including those related to Iran, Russia, drug trafficking and global terrorism.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that a major bank's failure to prevent money laundering and fulfill its sanctions obligations exposed the U.S. financial system to serious illicit finance risks.
Bessent said the measures taken sent the message that even the largest financial institutions are not above the law.
Bank admits willful violations
Of the total, FinCEN assessed a $1.2 billion penalty — the third-largest in Treasury history — crediting the $750 million civil money penalty imposed by the OCC, the largest in the agency’s 163-year history. No asset cap was imposed. According to FinCEN, Bank of America admitted willfully violating the Bank Secrecy Act, failing to maintain an adequate anti-money laundering program, failing to conduct due diligence on correspondent accounts of foreign financial institutions and failing to file suspicious activity reports covering some $5 billion in transactions.
The OCC said the bank “knew for years” that it was failing to escalate potentially suspicious activity to investigators and that its BSA officer and staff lacked sufficient expertise. Bank of America had agreed to a cease-and-desist order over the same deficiencies in 2024, but regulators said that more than a year later it was still processing potential trade-based money laundering transactions because of a flaw in its monitoring system. “Banks that fall short can expect swift and significant action from the OCC,” Comptroller Jonathan Gould said.
Third-quarter charge
Bank of America said it would take a non-tax-deductible charge of $1.2 billion in its third-quarter results, reducing net income by about 17 cents a share. “Financial crime compliance is serious, and we are responsible for getting it right,” a bank spokesperson said, adding that the bank has invested billions in technology and staff and is “far along with and committed to completing the work required.”
