MAS shuts down Falcon Bank, imposes penalties on DBS and UBS in 1MDB crackdown

SINGAPORE (Oct 11): The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) is withdrawing the merchant bank status of Falcon Bank’s Singapore branch for its “serious failures in anti-money laundering (AML) controls and improper conduct” by senior management at its head office in Switzerland, as well as the Singapore branch.

In addition, MAS has imposed on Falcon Bank financial penalties amounting to $4.3 million for 14 breaches of the central bank’s regulations, which include failures to adequately assess irregularities in activities pertaining to customer accounts, and file suspicious transaction reports.

Financial penalties of $1 million on DBS Bank and $1.3 million on UBS, for breaches of MAS’s AML requirements, will also be imposed, as there “deficiencies found in the on-boarding of new accounts, weaknesses in corroborating the source of funds, inadequate scrutiny of customers’ transactions and activities, and failure to file timely suspicious transaction reports”.

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