TD Bank, one of the 10 largest banks in the United States, has admitted to conspiracy to commit money laundering and is currently facing a $3 billion fine. The bank is said to have not enforced anti-money laundering policies for years, making it easier for criminals to move funds without oversight.
More than $670 million was funneled through the bank in three money laundering schemes between 2019 and 2023, according to the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ). Bank employees received over $57,000 worth of gift cards from criminals in exchange for authorizing transactions.
“Today, TD Bank also became the largest bank in U.S. history to plead guilty to failing Bank Secrecy Act programs and the first U.S. bank in history to plead guilty to money laundering conspiracy,” said the U.S. Attorney General. Merrick Garland said. “TD Bank chose profit over compliance with the law. As a result of this decision, the bank is now facing billions of dollars in penalties.”
Garland noted that employees often joke about the money laundering allowed within the bank. Even upper management knew that potential criminal activity was taking place, but did little to stop it.
Prior to government intervention, nearly $18.3 trillion in customer activity reportedly went unnoticed. But TD Bank is now actively working to change things, including changing leadership and bringing in experts.
“We know what the problem is and we’re fixing it. As we move forward, we’ll make sure this never happens again,” TD Bank Group CEO NPR reported. said Bharat Masrani. “And I’m 100% confident that we can get to the other side and come out even stronger.”
TD Bank’s Money Laundering Activities
Deputy Treasurer Wally Adeyemo said the continued neglect of TD Bank was “fertile ground” for financing illegal activities such as drug and human trafficking. The bank’s policies were so lax that a person could move $470 million in illegal cash through TD branches, deposit more than $1 million “multiple times” in the same day, and withdraw it by check or wire transfer. It is reported that. Although the bank staff expressed concern, they left the transaction as it was.
In another case, a criminal group was able to transfer $39 million to Colombia using multiple TD bank accounts. The conspirators used the same Venezuelan passports as identification documents when opening the accounts, but they went unnoticed until a bank employee was arrested in connection with the plot.
The Department of Justice investigation is still ongoing and TD Bank is fully cooperating. Approximately 20 people, including two bank employees, have been charged so far with involvement in the money laundering scheme.
Another financial conglomerate, Citigroup, also ran into trouble with U.S. regulators earlier this year. The banking giant was fined $136 million for failures related to risk management.
