A U.S. court has accepted a plea from the French bank, BNP Paribas, that sees it admit to violating U.S. economic sanctions and agreeing to pay almost US$9 billion in penalties.
The Paris-based bank pled guilty to a one-count information charging it with conspiring to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) and the Trading with the Enemy Act (TWEA), for its role in processing billions of dollars of U.S. dollar transactions through the U.S. financial system on behalf of Sudanese, Iranian, and Cuban entities that were subject to U.S. economic sanctions from 2004 through 2012.
The court accepted the plea, which had been entered into by the government and the bank on June 30, that will see the bank forfeit US$8.8 billion, pay a criminal fine of US$140 million, and agree to cooperate with U.S. authorities. It will also be subject to a five-year term of probation, during which it must enhance its compliance policies and procedures to satisfy settlement agreements with its principal U.S. regulators, the U.S. Federal Reserve and the New York State Department of Financial Services.
Most of the illegal payments were made on behalf of entities in Sudan, which were subject to U.S. sanctions for facilitating terrorism and committing human rights abuses. It processed approximately US$6.4 billion on behalf of sanctioned Sudanese entities from July 2006 through June 2007, including approximately $4 billion on behalf of a financial institution owned by the government of Sudan. It also processed approximately $1.75 billion on behalf of Cubans, and more than $650 million of transactions involving entities tied to Iran.