OPINION: It’s not the system, it’s the people – TD Bank scandal through a different lens
A big thank you to Jean Hurley and Global Relay for republishing my piece about the TD Bank scandal. It's so important for we AML professionals to cut through the fog of excuses and focus on the reality of why these things happen. No matter what former TD Bank senior executives claim occurred, when you ignore the constant warnings from your front line professionals, it's not because you are deaf, it is because you want to make believe you're deaf. To otherwise have heard the sirens would have undermined a misguided thought of what was best for the institution - growth vs. "doing the right thing". In the long run, honorable corporate governance is the difference maker. You don't have to ignore one to serve the other. It's time to bring the missions of sales and compliance closer together. Here's a link to the republication.
Transactional Pictures LLP, Founder & Principal
1 周I agree. Someone should have listened to Harry when he first uncovered Madoff's Ponzi scheme in the early 2000's. Maybe they should listen to him now!
Global Director of FCC Strategy & AML SME | Passionate about Fighting Financial Crime | Public Speaking | Thought Leader | Financial Crime Strategy | Industry Collaboration | Consulting
1 周Robert Mazur great article and so true. Only when bankers start going to prison will they sit up and take note.
Account Manager - Millbrook Support Services, Inc.
2 周I love how its always described as a failure of compliance. The fact that it was so widespread and went on for so long meeasn it was a feature not a failure.
Compliance Risk Management I Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Know Your Customer (KYC) I Legal Research and Analysis I Incident Response and Crisis Management I Regulatory Compliance Risk Assessment
2 周A robust tone from the top reinforces accountability across the organization.
Tax-Focused Financial Planning
2 周In my opinion, TD Bank should have been prosecuted for money laundering in the Stanford Financial fraud that was revealed in 2009. It is no surprise what happens when you let the corruption fester.