Bank of America has agreed to pay more than $1.21 billion to settle federal findings that it failed to stop money laundering and processed transactions that violated U.S. sanctions, the Treasury Department announced on Tuesday, Oct. 13.
The bank admitted that it willfully violated the Bank Secrecy Act, the main U.S. anti-money-laundering law, according to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). The Associated Press reported that Treasury called it the third-largest penalty in the department's history.
Who Imposed the Penalties
Three Treasury agencies acted together:
| Agency | Penalty | Note |
|---|---|---|
| FinCEN | $1.2 billion | Anti-money-laundering violations |
| Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) | $750 million | Credited against the FinCEN penalty, not added to it |
| Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) | $11.7 million | Sanctions violations |
The OCC said its $750 million fine is the largest it has ever imposed. Because that amount counts toward the FinCEN penalty, the combined total is a little over $1.21 billion, not nearly $2 billion.
What the Bank Did Wrong
According to Treasury and the FinCEN consent order, from at least 2018 through mid-2025 Bank of America:
- failed to report, or reported late, more than $5 billion in suspicious activity, over $1 billion of it tied to national security and other priority threats
- missed activity linked to risks such as Chinese money-laundering networks and illicit finance along the southwest border
- failed to perform required due diligence on accounts it maintained for foreign banks
- relied on tips from law enforcement instead of its own monitoring, which Treasury said reflected putting revenue ahead of compliance
A 2024 review cited in the order found nearly 8,900 suspicious activity reports that were never filed, covering about $4 billion in transactions.
Separately, OFAC said the bank committed 475 apparent sanctions violations worth about $14.8 million between 2021 and 2025, including payments involving blocked banks under Russia, Iran and other sanctions programs. OFAC classified those violations as non-egregious.
What Happens Now
The bank must hire an outside reviewer to look back at past transactions for missed suspicious activity, and it faces independent reviews of its monitoring and due diligence systems, according to Treasury.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the action shows that even the biggest financial institutions are not above the law.
In a statement reported by Reuters, Bank of America said it takes financial crime compliance seriously and is responsible for getting it right. The bank is taking a $1.2 billion charge, which is not tax-deductible, in its third-quarter results.
Not the First Warning
Regulators had already flagged problems. In December 2024, the OCC issued a cease-and-desist order over Bank of America's anti-money-laundering and sanctions controls. In 2023, the bank paid about $250 million in refunds and penalties over double-charged overdraft fees, withheld card rewards and accounts opened without customers' consent.
This week's action does not involve consumer accounts, and regulators have not ordered customer refunds.
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