Fed seeks comment on bank anti-money laundering rule changes

The Federal Reserve Board on Tuesday requested comment on a proposal to amend requirements for banks to maintain anti-money laundering programs. The board said the changes are intended to align with separate proposals from four other agencies.

The proposal would shift bank anti-money laundering resources toward a risk-based approach, with more attention on higher-risk customers and activities. It would also require banks to incorporate the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network’s anti-money laundering priorities into their risk assessment processes.

The Fed said the approach is meant to make bank programs more focused on the risks they face. Under the proposal, once a bank has established an anti-money laundering program, Federal Reserve supervision and enforcement would center on significant failures to implement the program.

The board did not provide additional details in the release about the other agencies’ proposals. It also included media contact information for questions about the request for comment.

Federal Reserve guidance on anti-money laundering programs matters for banks because those programs are part of the framework used to detect and report suspicious activity. A shift toward a more risk-based model could affect how banks allocate compliance staff and monitoring systems, although the release did not quantify any expected costs or savings.

The proposal is also tied to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network’s anti-money laundering priorities, which the Fed said banks would need to fold into their own risk assessments. The release said the aim is to bring the Fed’s requirements into line with the separate changes proposed by four other agencies.

The Federal Reserve said the proposal is open for comment, but the release did not list a closing date in the material provided.

Sources

• Federal Reserve Board press release

Editorial note: This article was prepared with AI assistance and requires editorial review before publication.