Germany’s financial supervisor said J.P.Morgan SE failed to file suspicious transaction reports “without undue delay” between October 4, 2021 and September 30, 2022.
Germany’s financial supervisor BaFin has imposed a $52m (€45m) administrative fine on J.P.Morgan SE for shortcomings in money laundering prevention linked to the timeliness of suspicious transaction reports.
In a statement published on November 6, the regulator said the breaches relate to a period from 4 October 2021 to 30 September 2022.
BaFin said the bank failed to submit reports to the Financial Intelligence Unit “without undue delay”, characterising the failings as systemic. Under Germany’s Money Laundering Act, credit institutions must file promptly when a transaction is suspected of links to money laundering or terrorist financing.
The penalty is reportedly BaFin’s largest to date, surpassing previous high-water marks set for AML control weaknesses at other major institutions. The previous record was a €40m fine levied on Deutsche Bank in 2015 for similar shortcomings.
J.P. Morgan acknowledged the findings and framed the issues as historical. The bank said the late filings did not interfere with criminal probes and reiterated that it has strengthened systems and resources in financial crime compliance.
What the decision covers
- Scope period: 4 October 2021 to 30 September 2022.
- Issue cited: systemic delays in filing suspicious transaction reports to the FIU.
- Legal duty: immediate filing where suspicion thresholds are met under the German Money Laundering Act.
- Regulatory stance: largest BaFin AML fine reported to date.
Neither BaFin nor J.P. Morgan provided details on any further procedural steps in the coverage published to date.
The bank says it has upgraded AML controls and staffing. Market participants will watch for any follow-on supervisory actions and whether BaFin issues additional guidance on STR timeliness and governance.
Regulators have issued comparable AML sanctions this year, including the FCA’s £21.09 million penalty against Monzo Bank for failings in financial crime systems and controls, and the Central Bank of Ireland’s €21.46 million fine on Coinbase Europe for transaction-monitoring breaches.
