RCBC faces a P1 billion fine because of the P81 million money laundering scandal.
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) imposed a fine of P1 billion to Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) in connection to the P81 million money laundering scandal involving the amount stolen from the Bank of Bangladesh.
According to the monetary board, this is the biggest monetary sanction approved by their supervisory enforcement action.
The BSP imposed the supervisory enforcement action as part of their promise to maintain the stability of the country’s financial system through effective regulation of the BSP-supervised financial institutions.
RCBC assured that they will comply with the Monetary Board Resolution No. 1392 that orders them to pay the fine within one year.
RCBC President and CEO Gil A. Buenaventura said it is a huge amount but they will abide by the resolution to show their commitment in fighting money laundering, terrorism and other transitional crimes to ensure stability in the banking system.
“While the payment involves a large amount, RCBC believes that this is part of increasing regulatory oversight and restrictions and we will comply with the MB Resolution,” said Buenaventura.
He also assured that the P1 billion fine will not affect their operation and their capital remains strong.
The RCBC said it will continue helping the BSP.
In February 2016, instructions to steal US $951 million from Bangladesh Bank, the central bank of Bangladesh, were issued via the SWIFT network. Five transactions issued by hackers, worth $101 million and withdrawn from a Bangladesh Bank account at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, succeeded, with $20 million traced to Sri Lanka (since recovered) and $81 million to the Philippines.
The Federal Reserve Bank of NY blocked the remaining thirty transactions, amounting to $850 million, at the request of Bangladesh Bank.
The Philippines’ National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) launched a probe and looked into a Chinese-Filipino who allegedly played a key role in the money laundering of the illicit funds. The NBI is coordinating with relevant government agencies including the country’s Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC). The AMLC started its investigation on February 19, 2016 of bank accounts linked to a junket operator. AMLC has filed a money laundering complaint before the Department of Justice against a RCBC branch manager and five unknown persons with fictitious names in connection with the case.