Further to our earlier post, the Latvian VDD is investigating arms sales to an unnamed African country allegedly in breach of UN sanctions.
As part of that investigation the VDD has today announced the confiscation of $4m uncovered in an offshore account.
OFSI today announced that it had imposed a civil penalty for breach of the UK’s Russian sanctions.
The penalty notice is available here.
The fine was imposed on Hong Kong International Wine and Spirits Competition Limited (HKIWS), and was just £30,000.
The conduct in question was the receipt of funds and goods from a designated person. The goods in question were wine bottles. HKIWS was also found to have made “economic resources” available to a designated person. This was in the form of publicity, and illustrates OFSI’s wide view of what amounts to the making available of an economic resource.
The Luxembourg financial services regulator, the CSSF, has today imposed a a fine of €145,000 on Unzer Luxembourg SA for AML and sanctions compliance failings.
The penalty notice noted that the failings, including in sanctions screening, were identified as part of an on-site inspection in 2020 and 2021, and noted that the lack of a fine took into consideration the bank’s efforts at remediation.
The Luxembourg financial services regulator, the CSSF, has today fined BEMO Europe Banque Privée SA €356,000 for AML and sanctions compliance failings.
The penalty notice noted that the failings, including in sanctions screening, were identified as part of an on-site inspection in 2020, and noted that the size of the fine took into consideration the bank’s efforts at remediation.
The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority has fined Ghana International Bank Plc for sanctions compliance failures, including a lack of periodic screening, only screening after onboarding had been completed, and an insufficiently detailed or practical sanctions policy.
The bank was fined £5,829,900 after a 30% reduction for cooperation and early settlement.
HMRC has announced that British national Alexander George has been ordered to pay £700,000 in a confiscation order issued by the Southwark Crown Court. The funds are the proceeds of crime related to his conviction for exporting parts for jet fighters to Iran.
For more on his conviction back in 2018 see our earlier post.
OFSI has today announced a civil penalty of £15,000 against Tracerco Limited for a breach of the EU’s Syrian sanctions.
OFSI’s Penalty Notice is available here.
The breaches related to airline tickets valued at £2,956.43 purchased for a Tracerco employee through a travel agency. The airline in question, however, was Syrian Arab Airlines which is designated under the EU’s sanctions.
OFSI, therefore, concluded that purchasing the tickets amounted to making funds available to a designated person. OFSI also commented, in relation to the requirement that it showed Tracerco either knew or had reasonable grounds to suspect that the transactions would breach the regulations, that operating in the region was sufficient to satisfy this requirement.
Following raids in Riga and Tallinn by the Latvian Security Police, in close cooperation with the Estonian Internal Security Service (ISS), it was reported today that two individuals have been fined by the Latvian courts for breaching the EU’s Russian sanctions.
The breaches involved making funds available, through contracts involving broadcasting, to a designated person. The individuals (Oleg Solodov and Margus Merima) were each fined €25,000, and a further €3 million was confiscated.
The UK’s HM Revenue and Customs has today announced the imposition of 10 compound penalties in relation to failures to comply with the UK’s export control regulations for dual-use and military goods. The fines were imposed between March and November 2021.
HMRC’s Notice to Exporters can be found here.
In line with HMRC’s standard practice the compound penalties are anonymised and of low value, with little information made available. The information provided is supplied below.
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