Citi’s annus horribilis has now extended to Japan in
the form of a one-month suspension of all retail sales activities
at its 35-strong-branch network, including advertising and
marketing activity, as a result of a failure to comply with local
regulations relating to suspicious transactions, including money
laundering.
The ban, imposed by the country’s Financial Services Agency,
runs from 15 July to 14 August and is the bank’s second such
suspension in Japan in the past five years.
Go deeper with GlobalData
To add to the bank’s embarrassment, it was
also ordered to revamp its corporate governance structure and
internal controls.
Citi has until the end of July to submit a
business improvement plan to the regulator, covering areas
including enhancement of its compliance environment, staff
retraining and improved internal audit procedures.
