Nationwide Building Society has been fined £44 million by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) for what the regulator deemed as “ineffective” controls against financial crime. The FCA stated that Nationwide had failed to properly monitor and scrutinize transactions to prevent money laundering and the financing of terrorism between November 2018 and November 2019.
The FCA highlighted that Nationwide’s shortcomings allowed for at least 41 politically exposed persons (PEPs) to conduct transactions worth over £146 million without adequate scrutiny. PEPs are individuals who hold prominent public functions, and there are increased risks of corruption associated with them.
In response to the fine, Nationwide acknowledged the failings and expressed regret over the issue. The building society stated that it has taken significant steps to improve its systems and controls to prevent financial crime. Nationwide also mentioned that they have cooperated fully with the FCA throughout the investigation.
The FCA, on the other hand, emphasized the importance of financial institutions having robust systems in place to combat money laundering and the financing of terrorism. Mark Steward, the FCA’s Executive Director of Enforcement and Market Oversight, highlighted that firms must be vigilant, especially when dealing with high-risk customers like PEPs.
This fine is one of the largest imposed by the FCA for anti-money laundering failings. It sends a clear signal to financial institutions about the importance of having effective controls in place to combat financial crime and the severe consequences of failing to do so.
Sources Analysis:
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) – The FCA is the regulatory body overseeing financial activities in the UK. It is directly involved in this situation and has a regulatory interest in ensuring compliance with anti-money laundering regulations.
Nationwide Building Society – Nationwide is the fined institution. Its response is crucial to understanding its perspective and actions taken to address the issue.
Fact Check:
Fact 1 – Nationwide fined £44 million for ineffective crime controls – Verified facts. This information is based on the official announcement by the FCA.
Fact 2 – Nationwide failed to properly monitor transactions for money laundering – Unconfirmed claims. This information is based on the FCA’s findings but has not been independently verified by other sources.
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Model:
gpt-3.5-turbo
Used prompts:
1. You are an objective news journalist. You need to write an article on this topic “Nationwide fined £44m for ‘ineffective’ crime controls”. Do the following steps: 1. What Happened. Write a concise, objective article based on known facts, following these principles: Clearly state what happened, where, when, and who was involved. Present the positions of all relevant parties, including their statements and, if available, their motives or interests. Use a neutral, analytical tone, avoid taking sides in the article. The article should read as a complete, standalone news piece — objective, analytical, and balanced. Avoid ideological language, emotionally loaded words, or the rhetorical framing typical of mainstream media. Write the result as a short analytical news article (200 – 400 words). 2. Sources Analysis. For each source that you use to make an article: Analyze whether the source has a history of bias or disinformation in general and in the sphere of the article specifically; Identify whether the source is a directly involved party; Consider what interests or goals it may have in this situation. Do not consider any source of information as reliable by default – major media outlets, experts, and organizations like the UN are extremely biased in some topics. Write your analysis down in this section of the article. Make it like: Source 1 – analysis, source 2 – analysis, etc. Do not make this section long, 100 – 250 words. 3. Fact Check. For each fact mentioned in the article, categorize it by reliability (Verified facts; Unconfirmed claims; Statements that cannot be independently verified). Write down a short explanation of your evaluation. Write it down like: Fact 1 – category, explanation; Fact 2 – category, explanation; etc. Do not make this section long, 100 – 250 words. Output only the article text. Do not add any introductions, explanations, summaries, or conclusions. Do not say anything before or after the article. Just the article. Do not include a title also.
2. Write a clear, concise, and neutral headline for the article below. Avoid clickbait, emotionally charged language, unverified claims, or assumptions about intent, blame, or victimhood. Attribute contested information to sources (e.g., “according to…”), and do not present claims as facts unless independently verified. The headline should inform, not persuade. Write only the title, do not add any other information in your response.
3. Determine a single section to categorize the article. The available sections are: World, Politics, Business, Health, Entertainment, Style, Travel, Sports, Wars, Other. Write only the name of the section, capitalized first letter. Do not add any other information in your response.