Monetary Authority takes disciplinary action against Fubon Bank (Hong Kong) Limited for contravention of Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing Ordinance
The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority:
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) announced today (November 8) that it had completed an investigation and related disciplinary proceedings in relation to Fubon Bank (Hong Kong) Limited (FBHK) under the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing Ordinance (Chapter 615 of the Laws of Hong Kong) (AMLO). The Monetary Authority (MA) has imposed a pecuniary penalty of HK$4,000,000 against FBHK for contravention of the AMLO.
The disciplinary action (Note) follows FBHK’s self-report of transaction monitoring failures and the HKMA’s investigation into FBHK’s systems and controls for compliance with the AMLO. The HKMA found that, between April 2019 and July 2022, FBHK failed to establish and maintain effective procedures for continuously monitoring business relationships with customers. Specifically, FBHK failed to have in place effective procedures for managing system changes, following up on a substantial decrease in transaction alerts, and regularly reviewing the scope of transactions covered by its transaction monitoring system. FBHK also failed to conduct appropriate scrutiny of transactions carried out for customers, and update customer due diligence reviews upon trigger events.
In deciding the disciplinary action, the MA has taken into account all relevant circumstances andfactors, including:
the seriousness of the investigation findings;
the need to send a clear deterrent message to FBHK and the industry about the importance of having effective procedures to address money laundering and terrorist financing risks;
FBHK reported its transaction monitoring failures to the HKMA.It was co-operative during the investigation and enforcement proceedings;
FBHK has carried out remediation to address the identified transaction monitoring failures and the associated control deficiencies; and
FBHK has no previous disciplinary record.
The Executive Director (Enforcement and AML) of the HKMA, Mr Raymond Chan, said, "The AMLO requires banks to put in place effective procedures for continuous monitoring of their business relationships with customers so that potential money laundering and terrorist financing activities are detected early. When changes are introduced to existing monitoring systems, bank management should ensure that the scope of surveillance covers all relevant transactions and any identified deficiencies are followed up promptly."
Note: The disciplinary action is taken under section 21 of the AMLO. The AMLO imposes customer due diligence and record-keeping requirements on specified financial institutions, including Authorized Institutions, and designated non-financial businesses and professions. The MA is the relevant authority with respect to Authorized Institutions under the AMLO.
CHP investigates two suspected food poisoning clusters with epidemiological linkage
The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health (DH) is today (January 9) investigating two epidemiologically linked suspected food poisoning clusters affecting 39 students from two primary schools. The students developed symptoms after consuming lunch provided by the Sailing Boat Luncheon Production Limited. The CHP reminded the public to maintain good personal, food and environmental hygiene to prevent foodborne diseases.
The first cluster involves 12 boys and 16 girls aged between 6 and 11. They attend a primary school in Sham Shui Po. The investigation revealed that the affected students developed abdominal pain and diarrhoea approximately three to 31 hours after eating school lunch containing fish, chicken cutlets, sauce, garnish and rice, which was provided by the abovementioned school lunch supplier on January 6.
While investigating the first cluster, the CHP of the DH traced the supply chain of the school lunch supplier and identified another cluster, involving eight boys and three girls, aged between 10 and 12, who attend a primary school in Diamond Hill. The investigation revealed that the affected students developed abdominal pain and diarrhoea approximately five to 15 hours after eating lunch containing chicken, cervelat sausage, sauce and fusilli at school yesterday (January 8). The food concerned was also provided by the same school lunch supplier.
None of the affected students required hospitalisation and they are all currently in stable condition.
Officers of the CHP and the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department, including personnel of the Centre for Food Safety (CFS) and the Environmental Hygiene Branch, have inspected the food factory of the school lunch supplier concerned and the kitchen of the first school. They inspected the food storage, the food preparation process and environmental hygiene. Investigation revealed that some food items, such as meat and sauce, were prepared at the food factory, while the other food items, such as rice and garnish, were prepared at the school kitchen. It is suspected that some food items were prepared too early in advance. The CFS immediately instructed the premises concerned to suspend operations for thorough cleaning and disinfection, improve food preparation process and hygiene standards. The CFS has provided food safety and environmental hygiene education to the staff. Food and environmental samples were collected for testing.
The investigation of the CHP and CFS is ongoing.
To prevent foodborne diseases, members of the public are reminded to maintain personal, food and environmental hygiene at all times. When dining out, one should:
Avoid eating raw seafood;
Be a discerning consumer in choosing cold dishes, including sashimi, sushi and raw oysters at a buffet;
Choose pasteurised eggs, egg products or dried egg powder for dishes that often use undercooked eggs;
Patronise only reliable and licensed restaurants;
Ensure food is thoroughly cooked before eating during a hotpot or barbecue meal;
Handle raw and cooked foods carefully and separate them completely during the cooking process;
Use two sets of chopsticks and utensils to handle raw and cooked foods;
Avoid patronising illegal food hawkers;
Drink boiled water;
Susceptible populations, including those with weakened immunity, the elderly, pregnant women and young children are at a higher risk of foodborne diseases, so they should not consume raw or undercooked foods;
Refrain from trying to use salt, vinegar, wine or wasabi to kill bacteria as they are not effective; and
Always wash hands before eating and after going to the toilet.
Source: AI-found images
