The US
securities regulator has charged Merill Lynch, a broker-dealer and investment management firm, for failing to file hundreds of Suspicious
Activity Reports (SARs) for over a decade, starting from 2009. However, the
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced today (Tuesday) that Merrill
Lynch and BAC North America Holding Co. (BACNAH), its parent company, have agreed
to a censure and to pay $6 million in civil penalty to settle the charges,
without admitting or denying the regulator’s findings.
In a
separate action, Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) on Tuesday also slammed
a $6 million fine on Merrill Lynch for the same failure. The membership-based industry regulator noted that suspicious activities such as alleged
unauthorized debit card withdrawals, forged or altered checks, account
intrusions, identity theft and internet scams, went unreported as a result of
Merrill Lynch’s failure.
“Following
the 2009 merger between Merrill Lynch and Bank of America, N.A., Merrill Lynch
incorrectly applied the $25,000 monetary threshold applicable to national
banks, rather than the $5,000 threshold applicable to broker-dealers, when
determining whether to file a SAR,” FINRA explained. “As a result, Merrill
Lynch failed to file approximately 1,500 SARs from January 2009 to November 2019,
when the firm discovered and corrected its mistake.”
On its
part, the SEC pointed out that BACNAH handled the creation and execution of Merrill
Lynch’s SAR policies and procedures. It also oversaw the subsidiary’s filings of these reports.
“Merrill
Lynch and BACNAH did not file hundreds of Merrill Lynch SARs because they
failed to comply with one of the most basic requirements for a SAR program,”
said Katharine Zoladz, Co-Acting Regional Director of the SEC’s Los Angeles
Regional Office.
As a
self-regulatory organisation, FINRA keeps active tabs on securities firms doing
business in the United States. The membership organization serves to protect
investors and the integrity of the US securities market.
Since the
start of the year, FINRA has slapped varying monetary fines on several
industry members, including Credit Suisse Securities, SageTrader, UBS Securities, BGC Financial, and Nomura Securities. The fines are penalties for violations such as money laundering prevention,
inaccurate monthly statistics, and late and inaccurate submissions of Trade
Reporting and Compliance Engine (TRACE) reports.
Spotware appoints new CEO; XS.com welcomes Marketing Manager; read today’s news nuggets.
The US
securities regulator has charged Merill Lynch, a broker-dealer and investment management firm, for failing to file hundreds of Suspicious
Activity Reports (SARs) for over a decade, starting from 2009. However, the
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced today (Tuesday) that Merrill
Lynch and BAC North America Holding Co. (BACNAH), its parent company, have agreed
to a censure and to pay $6 million in civil penalty to settle the charges,
without admitting or denying the regulator’s findings.
In a
separate action, Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) on Tuesday also slammed
a $6 million fine on Merrill Lynch for the same failure. The membership-based industry regulator noted that suspicious activities such as alleged
unauthorized debit card withdrawals, forged or altered checks, account
intrusions, identity theft and internet scams, went unreported as a result of
Merrill Lynch’s failure.
“Following
the 2009 merger between Merrill Lynch and Bank of America, N.A., Merrill Lynch
incorrectly applied the $25,000 monetary threshold applicable to national
banks, rather than the $5,000 threshold applicable to broker-dealers, when
determining whether to file a SAR,” FINRA explained. “As a result, Merrill
Lynch failed to file approximately 1,500 SARs from January 2009 to November 2019,
when the firm discovered and corrected its mistake.”
On its
part, the SEC pointed out that BACNAH handled the creation and execution of Merrill
Lynch’s SAR policies and procedures. It also oversaw the subsidiary’s filings of these reports.
“Merrill
Lynch and BACNAH did not file hundreds of Merrill Lynch SARs because they
failed to comply with one of the most basic requirements for a SAR program,”
said Katharine Zoladz, Co-Acting Regional Director of the SEC’s Los Angeles
Regional Office.
As a
self-regulatory organisation, FINRA keeps active tabs on securities firms doing
business in the United States. The membership organization serves to protect
investors and the integrity of the US securities market.
Since the
start of the year, FINRA has slapped varying monetary fines on several
industry members, including Credit Suisse Securities, SageTrader, UBS Securities, BGC Financial, and Nomura Securities. The fines are penalties for violations such as money laundering prevention,
inaccurate monthly statistics, and late and inaccurate submissions of Trade
Reporting and Compliance Engine (TRACE) reports.
Spotware appoints new CEO; XS.com welcomes Marketing Manager; read today’s news nuggets.
