NEW YORK—Global fines for anti-money laundering (AML) and data privacy compliance breaches have fallen by nearly 50% year-on-year in the first half of 2021, but could bounce back quickly as financial crime continues, reported Info Security.
The decline comes in the wake of a report that global anti-money laundering fines at banks and financial services firms soared to $2.2 billion during 2020, five times higher than in 2019, as regulators stuck to tougher lines on AML, new reports show.
Citing data from Fenergo, Info Security noted that 85 individual fines were levied on global financial institutions for breaches of AML, Know Your Customer (KYC) and data privacy laws in the first six months of 2021 — a drop of 26% from the first half of 2020.
The fines translate into a value of nearly $938 million, which is a 46% decline.
The U.S. led the way with $711 million in fines, followed by Switzerland ($85 million), Norway ($48 million) and the U.K. ($33 million).
Figures Could Rebound
Fenergo’s global director of financial crime, Rachel Woolley, noted that the drop comes after a period of several years during which has seen regulators levy record fines in response to significant scandals.
However, the figures could quickly rebound in the second half of the year as several major cases are due to reach their conclusion, she added.
“We continue to see enforcement action-driven, at least in part, by recent Financial Action task Force (FATF) activity as countries facing scrutiny clamp down on perceived weaknesses in their regulatory regimes,” said Woolley. “We’re also seeing the continuation of the trend in fines aimed at non-financial firms such as gambling companies as regulators look to close the net on criminals.”