Enforcement action terminated against Turkish bank after four-year effort

A 2014 enforcement action against a Turkish bank has been terminated by the Federal Reserve, imposed four years ago to deal with deficiencies in the institution’s anti-money laundering (AML) efforts and compliance with the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA).

The central bank said that it terminated the enforcement against Turkiye Cumhuriyeti Ziraat Bankasi A.S. of Ankara, Turkey (and its branch in New York City) to correct the AML/BSA compliance issues.

The termination announcements indicates that the bank met the requirements of the Fed and the New York State Department of Financial Services (NYSDFS) when the action was taken. Those included requirements addressing: corporate governance and management oversight; BSA/AML compliance review and compliance program; suspicious activity monitoring and reporting; review of transactions, compliance with requirements of the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC); and an internal audit.

Federal Reserve Board announces termination of enforcement action with Turkiye Cumhuriyeti Ziraat Bankasi A.S.