Germany fines JP Morgan 45 million euros.

The German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) has fined JP Morgan SE, a subsidiary based in Frankfurt, €45 million for deficiencies in preventing money laundering between 2021 and 2022.

The fine, the highest ever imposed on an entity by BaFin, is due to JP Morgan SE's "culpable failure" to meet its supervisory obligations regarding internal suspicious transaction reporting processes, according to Europa Press.

According to BaFin, as a consequence of these procedural deficiencies, between October 4, 2021, and September 30, 2022, the entity systematically failed to comply with the obligation to submit suspicious transaction reports without undue delay.

In this regard, the supervisor reminds that credit institutions are obliged to comply with German anti-money laundering legislation and must adopt appropriate supervisory measures to prevent non-compliance with the obligations arising from this law , including the "without delay" submission of suspicious transaction reports to the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU).

“In cases of systematic infringements, the amount of the administrative fine may be calculated based on the entity’s total turnover. This can result in very high administrative fines, as in the present case,” BaFin added.

A JP Morgan spokesperson told Europa Press that "the fine is related to historical findings and the timing of the suspicious activity reports did not prevent any investigation by the authorities."

In this regard, he defended the entity's firm commitment to the detection, prevention, and reporting of money laundering and financial crimes. "We are pleased that this matter has been resolved and corrected," he added.