- TD Bank (TSX:TD) has agreed to pay US$3.09 billion in penalties to settle a case with U.S. regulators over failing to monitor money laundering activities by drug cartels
- Additional measures include a U.S. asset cap of US$434 billion and regulatory monitoring over the coming years
- TD Bank is the sixth-largest bank in North America with C$1.97 trillion in assets as of July 31, 2024
- TD Bank stock has added 8.18 per cent year-over-year and 18.10 per cent since 2019
TD Bank (TSX:TD) has agreed to pay US$3.09 billion in penalties to settle a case with U.S. regulators over failing to monitor money laundering activities by drug cartels.
According to The Wall Street Journal, the bank pleaded guilty on Thursday under an agreement that will also see its main regulator, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, impose a retail asset limit of US$434 billion on the bank for operations within the United States.
TD will be monitored by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network to ensure compliance, with a representative from the latter expected to be in place for four years.
While TD has already set aside US$3.05 billion for the settlement, the asset cap will prove even more costly, given its long history of growth by acquisitions that has allowed it to amass more than 10 million customers and open more than 1,200 branches across the United States over almost two decades. Investors can learn more about the settlement by listening to Thursday’s conference call hosted by the bank.
The multi-billion-dollar penalty joins numerous other legal woes plaguing TD as of late, including a more than US$20 million settlement with the DOJ, the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority for manipulating the U.S. treasury market, a US$28 million penalty under order from the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau for filing fraudulent consumer reports, and at least four cases alleging that employees at branches in Florida, New York and New Jersey committed serious financial crimes.
About TD Bank
Toronto-Dominion Bank is the sixth-largest bank in North America with C$1.97 trillion in assets as of July 31, 2024. It serves more than 27.5 million customers across Canadian personal and commercial banking, U.S. retail banking, wealth management and insurance, and wholesale banking.
TD Bank stock (TSX:TD) last traded at C$87.11 per share. The stock has added 8.18 per cent year-over-year and 18.10 per cent since 2019.
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(Top photo of a TD Bank branch on Wall Street in New York: Adobe Stock)