Swedbank Self-Discloses Potential Sanctions Violations

Swedbank may have committed 586 violations of U.S. sanctions and self-disclosed the violations to the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, the bank said March 11. The bank said the violations involved about $4.8 million worth of transactions between 2014 and 2019 and include payments with its subsidiaries in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. More than 500 of the violations constituted “salary payments” and other payments associated with the operation of a vessel and operator located in Crimea that used Swedbank in the Baltics.

The bank said it hired a law firm -- Clifford Chance -- to investigate its anti-money laundering compliance. The law firm is also examining how Swedbank “responded historically” to “shortcomings” in anti-money laundering and sanctions compliance. The investigation “shows that the bank’s process for Know Your Customer, transaction monitoring and internal governance and control have had shortcomings,” the bank said. “At the same time, it is some relief that it regards a relatively low amount and transactions such as salary payments.” The bank also said “extensive work has been ongoing to remedy shortcomings,” and added that it will “cooperate fully” with OFAC.