Metro Bank Fined £16.7 Million for Compliance Failures

Metro Bank has been fined £16.67 million by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) for failing to properly monitor over 60 million transactions, valued at more than £51 billion, for money laundering risks from June 2016 to December 2020. The bank's automated monitoring system, implemented in 2016, was ineffective due to data integration errors, leading to unmonitored transactions on the day accounts were opened. Despite junior staff raising concerns in 2017 and 2018, corrective measures were not fully in place until December 2020. Therese Chambers of the FCA emphasized that these failings left a gap in the defense against financial crime. Metro Bank has since implemented remedial measures and stated that the conclusion of this investigation allows them to focus on future growth. The bank's CEO expressed optimism about moving forward after resolving this legacy issue.