The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has fined Barclays a combined £42m for serious shortcomings in its financial crime risk management processes, stemming from two separate cases involving WealthTek and Stunt & Co.
Barclays Bank UK PLC was fined for failing to properly assess the money laundering risks before opening a client account for WealthTek. The FCA noted that Barclays did not perform basic due diligence, including a simple check of the Financial Services Register. If it had, the bank would have seen that WealthTek was not authorised to hold client money. Instead, £34m was deposited into the account, exposing clients to heightened risk of misappropriation or money laundering.
The bank has agreed to make a voluntary payment of £6.3m to WealthTek clients who have experienced a shortfall in reclaiming their funds. In a related development, the FCA charged WealthTek’s principal partner in December 2024 with several criminal offences, including fraud and money laundering.
Separately, Barclays Bank PLC has been fined £39.3m for its failure to manage money laundering risks linked to Stunt & Co, which received £46.8m from Fowler Oldfield—a known money laundering operation—within just over a year. The bank did not adequately collect information at the start of the relationship or monitor transactions properly, despite having been alerted by law enforcement agencies to suspicious activities and police raids involving the two firms.
Crucially, Barclays only began reviewing its exposure to Fowler Oldfield after learning of the FCA’s decision to prosecute NatWest over a similar matter.
FCA joint executive director of enforcement and market oversight Therese Chambers said, “The consequences of poor financial crime controls are very real – they allow criminals to launder the proceeds of their crimes, and they allow fraudsters to defraud consumers. Banks need to take responsibility and act promptly, particularly when obvious risks are brought to their attention. In the first of these cases, Barclays secured a significant reduction in its fine through its extensive co-operation with our investigation and through making a voluntary payment to affected consumers at our request.”
Barclays is currently engaged in a major remediation programme aimed at strengthening its anti-money laundering (AML) systems. The FCA has reiterated that tackling financial crime remains a key supervisory priority for 2024, urging all retail banks to improve their internal controls and compliance frameworks.
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