The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has levied a fine of $1,100,000 on Asiaciti Trust Singapore Pte Ltd (ATSPL) for its failure to comply with MAS’ AML/CFT requirements. In an inspection, MAS found that ATSPL committed serious breaches of MAS’ AML/CFT requirements for trust companies during 2007-18.
ATSPL did not appropriately follow AML/CFT policies. Firstly, ATSPL did not have adequate procedures in place to identify high-risk trust relevant parties. This meant that ATSPL could not identify and authenticate the funding source of an effective controller of a fund. Moreover, ATSPL failed to collect relevant information about suspicious, unusually large transactions conducted by politically exposed persons. As a result, ATSPL did not have enough information to file necessary suspicious transaction reports (STRs). Furthermore, ATSPL did not conduct independent audits of its AML/CFT controls.
MAS decided the fine amount based on ATSPL’s response to its investigation. ATSPL has already paid the fine and also taken relevant steps to address the issues that MAS identified. These steps include reviewing customer accounts and transactions, ending business with several higher-risk trust accounts and filing STRs.