October 2020 Regulatory Updates
Regulatory Actions and Updates from Around the Globe
Enforcement Updates – October 2020
International: Regulators in the United States, Hong Kong, and the United Kingdom charged Goldman Sachs for deficiencies in its compliance and AML controls that led to multi-billion misappropriation of funds in a 1MDB bond offering underwritten by the firm in 2012 and 2013. Goldman Sachs agreed to pay over $3 billion in fines to the SEC, SFC, and FCA.
United States: The Commodity Futures Trading Commission filed a civil enforcement action charging the BitMEX trading platform with failure to implement required KYC/AML procedures.
United States: The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) targets the founder of Helix and Coin Ninja with a $60-million fine for violating AML laws.
United States: The Securities and Exchange Commission charged a Houston-based seismic data company with an accounting fraud that inflated the company’s revenue by approximately $100 million.
United States: The SEC fined Israel-based day-trading education firm $130,000 for selling security-based swaps to over 5,000 retail investors without registration.
United Kingdom: The Financial Conduct Authority censured Aviva plc insurance company for listing and transparency rules breaches.
Expert Insights
FCA Research Reveals 1.1 Million Spike in Cryptoasset Buyers
Oct 13, 2020 | In our October Expert Insight series, Denisse Rudich of Rudich Advisory reviews the FCA’s recent findings on the growth of the cryptoassets industry in the UK and potential regulatory changes.
October’s Regtech Theme: UBO Due Diligence
Identifying and verifying an Ultimate Beneficial owner (UBO) of the company you are doing business with is a crucial requirement of corporate due diligence.
What are UBOs? How can you make sure they are not involved in money laundering or terrorist financing, and comply with AML regulations?
Learn more in the recent iComply Glossary article: Ultimate Beneficial Owner due diligence.
Upcoming Events
Fireside Chat: Navigating the Complexities of Beneficial Ownership
Date: Thursday, November 26, 2020 | 10am PST – 1pm EST – 7pm CET
Curious about the challenges and importance of beneficial ownership and proper due diligence?
Join our live November fireside chat, “Navigating the Complexities of Beneficial Ownership: The Challenges of UBO Due Diligence.“
learn more
Is your AML compliance too expensive, time-consuming, or ineffective?
iComply enables financial services providers to reduce costs, risk, and complexity and improve staff capacity, effectiveness, and customer experience.
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Centralized Digital Identity and ID “Phone Home” Privacy Alarms
As digital ID systems expand globally, centralised platforms like One Login and Aadhaar raise major concerns about privacy, data security, and surveillance. This article explores the risks of identity systems that phone home and how iComply’s decentralised identity verification solution offers a more secure and compliant path forward.
How to Do a KYC Refresh the Right Way
KYC refresh is a critical part of ongoing due diligence. This guide explains how to build an efficient, risk-based KYC refresh strategy using identity verification tools to improve compliance, customer experience, and operational performance.
Accelerating Ultimate Beneficial Ownership Discovery with KYB Compliance Software
Beneficial ownership discovery doesn’t need to be slow or manual. This article explores how firms can use advanced KYB software to comply with UBO requirements from AUSTRAC, FCA, FinCEN, and the EU AMLA – while improving customer satisfaction and operational efficiency.
