WASHINGTON, Aug 3 - U.S. regulators announced a $125 million civil fine against UBS Financial Services for alleged willful violations of the Bank Secrecy Act, the principal U.S. anti-money laundering statute. The Treasury Department's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) said the penalty is the largest ever imposed on a broker-dealer for violations of that law.
FinCEN labeled UBS a recidivist in its action, pointing to a prior enforcement in 2018 when the firm paid $14.5 million for shortcomings in its monitoring of foreign currency wires. According to FinCEN, UBS had previously given assurances that it would address the underlying compliance weaknesses, but regulators say those commitments were not fulfilled.
In its formal findings, FinCEN stated that UBS failed to appropriately monitor more than 50,000 foreign currency wire transfers, with the total value of those transfers exceeding $10 billion. The agency also said the firm did not disclose the extent of these monitoring failures.
"Today’s announcement brings closure to this legacy matter," UBS said in a statement. "UBS has cooperated fully with its regulators and has made significant investments to remediate and strengthen its AML program in line with leading industry practices."
The enforcement action focuses on the broker-dealer arm of the firm and represents a notable regulatory outcome under the Bank Secrecy Act. FinCEN's characterization of the case emphasizes both the scale of the unmonitored activity and the agency's view that the firm had previously been penalized for related deficiencies.
UBS Group AG and its broker-dealer subsidiary now face the civil monetary penalty as part of the agency's effort to enforce anti-money laundering controls. The firm publicly framed the outcome as resolution of an older issue and highlighted cooperation with regulators and investments in remediation.
While UBS described the announcement as bringing closure, FinCEN's statement underscores that regulators viewed the episode as a repeated compliance failure rather than an isolated lapse. The action therefore carries significance for broker-dealers and other financial firms that are subject to the Bank Secrecy Act's requirements for monitoring and reporting suspicious activities.
What the record shows:
- Penalty amount: $125 million civil fine against UBS Financial Services for alleged willful violations of the Bank Secrecy Act.
- Prior enforcement: UBS was fined $14.5 million in 2018 for inadequate monitoring of foreign currency wires.
- Scope of alleged failures: Regulators say more than 50,000 foreign currency wires, totaling more than $10 billion, were not properly monitored or disclosed.