Finra fines int’l broker-dealer Actinver for AML failures

Houston-based international brokerage firm Actinver Securities has been fined $150,000 and censured by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (Finra) for failures within its anti-money laundering (AML) procedures.

Between August 2015 and March 2017, Actinver’s registered securities unit failed to both establish and implement AML processes which could be ‘reasonably expected’ to detect illicit financial activity, according to a Finra filing.

Finra pointed in particular to AML failings within its foreign currency exchange unit and that it did not properly supervise or look into a number of accounts that had mostly cash assets.

Finra added that while Actinver’s AML program required its employees to gather and document specific information when opening accounts of politically exposed persons (PEP), its employees routinely left the forms blank.

Actinver did not respond to multiple requests for comment. It should be noted that ongoing power outages in Texas may have contributed to this.

In one example, Actinver was unable to provide information on the wire activity of a PEP who was domiciled in Mexico and who had opened a business account for a company based in the British Virgin Islands.

The account had received a total of nine third-party wires totaling more than $1.3m – more than the stated annual income for the person holding the account – which should have raised a number of red flags, according to Finra.

The firm’s foreign exchange business, which represented 21% of the firm’s wire activity during Finra’s two-year investigation period, had also failed to adequately supervise the transfers despite its volume, the authority said.

Without admitting or denying Finra’s findings, Actinver consented to Finra’s disciplinary action.