Compliance & Ethics

On Wednesday, AMLA published draft regulatory technical standards that would establish, for the first time, a common methodology for supervisors across the European Union when enforcing breaches of anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing rules. The proposal is less about creating tougher enforcement than creating more consistent enforcement. If two organizations commit the same breach under the same circumstances, supervisors should begin from the same framework and, absent meaningful differences in the facts, arrive at comparable outcomes.

For nearly three years, Australians arriving at JustAnswer's website were greeted with what looked like a straightforward proposition. An automated chat promised access to expert advice for $1.30 (AUD $2), a small, refundable payment that suggested a single transaction rather than the beginning of an ongoing relationship. It was only later, often after money had already left their accounts, that many consumers discovered they had signed up for recurring monthly subscriptions costing between $29 and $49 (AUD $45 and AUD $75).

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission on Monday issued warning letters to eight companies whose advertising appears to overstate where their products were made. Seven companies were told their products may have been falsely marketed as "Made in the USA," while another received a warning over products advertised as "Made in Texas," despite indications they were imported, either entirely or in significant part.

There is a familiar rhythm to businesses that promise financial independence. The details change with technology but the promise remains durable. There is a system, the system works, and ordinary people need only follow it. The Federal Trade Commission argues that Publishing.com sold precisely that story, and on Thursday the agency formally closed the case with a final order designed to ensure the company cannot tell it the same way again.

The Federal Court of Australia has ordered ASX to pay a civil penalty of $13.5 million (AUD 20.5 million) after the exchange admitted that a market announcement misled investors by stating the Clearing House Electronic Subregister System (CHESS) replacement project was "progressing well." The court also ordered ASX to pay $2.0 million (AUD 3 million) toward the Australian Securities and Investments Commission's legal costs, bringing another chapter of the long-running project to a close, though not one likely to be forgotten quickly.

The work of fighting money laundering has always invited a certain temptation: to mistake the existence of controls for the existence of control. Japan's Financial Services Agency is now pushing firmly against that instinct. In its latest assessment of anti-money laundering, counter-terrorist financing and financial crime efforts, the regulator makes clear that the question facing financial institutions is no longer whether they have built the necessary frameworks. It is whether those frameworks can withstand contact with the world as it actually is.

The Federal Trade Commission announced that Hopper has agreed to pay $35 million to settle allegations that they charged consumers fees without their informed consent while misleading users about the cost of bookings and the benefits of some of the company's paid services. The proposed settlement also bars the company from deceiving consumers about fees and requires it to clearly disclose the total price of goods and services, the fees and charges associated with them, and the final amount consumers will pay before completing a transaction.