De Volksbank has been fined €20 million for failing to adequately safeguard customer funds. The penalties were imposed by the Dutch Central Bank (DNB).
The parent company of SNS, ASN Bank, RegioBank, and BLG Wonen did not meet risk management standards as required by the Financial Supervision Act between 2018 and 2023, resulting in a €15 million fine. Additionally, the bank must enhance measures to prevent money laundering and terrorism financing, incurring an additional €5 million penalty.
“It is extremely painful to receive two fines from DNB for not having two significant parts of our operations in order,” said CEO Roland Boekhout in a press release. “As a bank, we have let down our customers, colleagues, and partners.
We sincerely apologize for this.” The deficiencies were attributed to poor management and insufficient internal controls, which the bank has been working to improve since last year. The fines will impact De Volksbank’s profits for 2024, with the annual report due next month.
Source: NOS