The Financial Supervisory Authority (FMA) is investigating Raiffeisen Bank International (RBI) for possible shortcomings in the fight against money laundering. According to an insider, this also concerns payments that affect Russia.
The bank reports on the investigation in its annual report published on Thursday. It concerns the so-called ‘know your customer’ principle, according to the report. This involves checking the personal and business details of a bank’s customers to prevent money laundering.
An administrative criminal procedure is underway
According to the annual report, the regulator is examining payments made by three customers between 2017 and 2020. From the FMA’s perspective, the RBI has failed to fully comply with its obligations under the relevant administrative regulations. The RBI was informed about the investigation in January 2023. “The administrative criminal procedure is currently ongoing and could lead to an administrative fine,” the report said.
The investigation in Austria concerns payments involving Russia and data discovered by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists’ investigative network in a project called Cyprus Confidential, a person familiar with the matter said.
Bank wants to appeal against sentence
A bank spokesperson said the RBI would appeal any fine. None have been imposed yet. The investigation concerns old payments up to and including 2020.
Source: Krone
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