Two subsidiaries of French bank Crédit Agricole’s corporate and investment banking arm have agreed to pay more than $1.12m in civil penalties to settle alleged violations of US sanctions, the Treasury Department said on 26 September.
CA Indosuez Switzerland, a Switzerland-based indirect subsidiary of Crédit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank, has agreed to pay $720,258 for allegedly violating sanctions against Cuba, Iran, Sudan and Syria as well sanctions related to the annexation of Ukraine’s Crimea region, according to the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control.
Separately, CFM Indosuez Wealth, a Monaco-based indirect subsidiary also of Crédit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank, has agreed to pay $401,039 for allegedly violating sanctions against Cuba, Iran and Syria, OFAC said.
Representatives of Crédit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
The two subsidiaries were responsible for implementing the compliance policies of their two parents, Crédit Agricole and its investment banking arm, but failed to do so from as early as 2011 until 2016, according to OFAC.
The Treasury also alleged that the two subsidiaries helped operate banking and securities accounts in US dollars on behalf of individual customers located in sanctioned jurisdictions and process dollar-based transactions through the US financial system, including via correspondent banks and US brokerage firms.