Bank of Cyprus will show zero tolerance to money laundering, chairman Joseph Ackermann and CEO John Hourican said in a circular sent to staff on Thursday. The bank’s leadership told personnel they expected strict adherence to regulations and failure to do so would have a negative impact on their performance assessment.
“We are operating in a highly connected world where the financial system is largely regulated and where banks are effectively the subsidiaries in international trade flows. We take this responsibility very seriously, and it is important to remind each member of staff of it,” they said. ‘The bank, they add, “has a zero tolerance policy on money laundering and no excuses are accepted for breaking the law or violating internal policies, or its compliance framework,” they added.
The circular noted that “as of 2014, the framework for combating financial crime and the compliance framework has been fully revised. Current policies, processes, monitoring and actions to safeguard the bank are set to the highest standards in Europe, but we depend on our employees to uphold these standards.”
