TD Bank sacked more than a dozen staff after anti-money laundering failings - report
Toronto-Dominion Bank (NYSE:TD) fired more than a dozen people for their conduct relating to the bank's shortcomings in its anti-money laundering ("AML") procedures in the U.S., according to a media report.
The company took action against certain leaders in the bank's AML function and people working in branches that were found to have violated TD Bank's (TD) code of conduct, Dow Jones reported, citing a person familiar with the matter.
Some of the employees were fired as criminal charges were brought against them, Dow Jones said.
During the bank's Q2 earnings call, CEO Bharat Masrani said, "There were serious instances where the bank did not effectively monitor detect, report and respond to suspicious activity. Criminals are regularly targeting financial institutions. In these cases, TD did not effectively thwart their activity. This is unacceptable."
He said the company has invested C$500M (US$365M) in AML remediation efforts. "We made tangible progress, but there is more work ahead." In addition, TD is cooperating with U.S. regulators and the Department of Justice and is seeking to resolve the investigations "as soon as possible."
In its fiscal Q2, TD took a C$615M charge for the anti-money laundering program investigations. The AML investigation and a civil matter provision reduced TD Bank's (TD) CET1 by 15 basis points in the quarter ended April 30, 2024.