In the wake of the anti-money laundering (AML) investigation prompted by the Panama Papers incident, the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) has sanctioned Russia’s Gazprombank division in Switzerland. Due to their findings, FINMA announced that Gazprombank Switzerland is prohibited from accepting new clients due to their AML violations from 2006 to 2016.
The investigation found that Gazprombank Switzerland violated many AML regulations including careless risk assessments, failure to keep records of transactions, failure to validate proper documentation and information when opening new accounts and accepting new clients, as well as failure to report suspicious business relationships to the Money Laundering Reporting Office Switzerland (MROS) within the required time period. In some instances, Gazprombank Switzerland’s risk assessment of business relations were either inaccurate or completed too late.
FINMA stated that due to these violations, Gazprombank Switzerland displayed “serious shortcomings in prevention of money laundering” and additionally instructed Gazprombank Switzerland to set up a new risk committee. With the sanctions regarding Gazprombank Switzerland in place, FINMA’s investigation regarding the Panama Papers has ended.
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