Bank of America was hit with a massive $1.2 billion fine over anti-money laundering violations.

The Treasury Department announced the record enforcement against Bank of America on Tuesday afternoon:

• The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) assessed a $1.2 billion penalty for the Bank’s failure to mitigate and report priority national security risks, including Chinese Money Laundering Networks and illicit finance along the southwest border.
• The OCC assessed a $750 million civil money penalty for the Bank’s deficient and ineffective BSA/AML (anti-money laundering) compliance program.
• The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced an $11.6 million settlement agreement with the Bank over apparent violations of numerous sanctions programs, including on Iran, Russia, narcotics, and global terrorism.

“Financial institutions are on the front lines of protecting our economic and national security,” said Secretary Scott Bessent.

“When a bank of this size fails to meet its anti-money laundering and sanctions obligations, the consequences extend far beyond its own walls, exposing the entire U.S. financial system to significant illicit finance risks,” Bessent said.

“Today’s actions send a clear message that even the biggest financial institutions are not above the law,” Bessent added.

Fox Business reported:

The Treasury Department announced approximately $1.21 billion in penalties against Bank of America over longstanding anti-money laundering failures and U.S. sanctions violations.

Regulators found the bank failed to adequately investigate trillions of dollars in potentially suspicious transactions despite knowing about significant compliance deficiencies.

The action includes the largest penalty in the history of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) and the third-largest in the history of the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN).

FinCEN assessed a $1.2 billion penalty against the nation’s second-largest bank, which includes credit for a $750 million civil penalty imposed by the OCC. A separate $11.6 million settlement with the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) brings the combined penalties to approximately $1.21 billion.

According to Treasury, Bank of America failed to report more than $5 billion in suspicious transactions on time, including more than $1 billion in activity involving national security risks such as Chinese money laundering networks, fraud and potential trade-based money laundering connected to the southwest border.