Bank Negara fines Habib with RM96,250 for AMLA non-compliance

KUALA LUMPUR: Bank Negara imposed a compound of RM96,250 on Habib Jewels Sdn Bhd on Jan 29, 2024 for not promptly submitting suspicious transaction reports (STR) as required by Anti-Money Laundering laws.

The central bank, in a statement today, said the non-compliance with the STR submission requirements, which took place over one year, was detected by Bank Negara during the on-site examination.

“Habib failed to promptly submit STRs on seven series of suspicious transactions by its customers even though the series of transactions matched Habib’s internal red flags,” it said.

Under the Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Unlawful Activities Act 2001 (AMLA), all reporting institutions are required to promptly report any suspicious transactions to Bank Negara which is the competent authority as appointed under section 7(1) of the AMLA.

Additionally, this report provides BNM and law enforcement agencies with valuable information and/or intelligence of potential criminal activities to support financial crime investigations.

Bank Negara said the compound amount was determined according to the Penalty Framework and considering relevant factors such as Habib's lack of diligence in complying with laws and its own standard operating procedures, the severity of the non-compliance, the fact that this was Habib's first instance of non-compliance, and the effective actions taken by Habib to prevent future non-compliance.

“Habib has since strengthened its STR reporting mechanism and the functions of its compliance officer. Habib paid a total of RM96,250 for the compound imposed by Bank Negara on Feb 23, 2024,” it said.