Controlling Shareholders Of Banca Privada D'Andorra ("BPA Group"), Ramon And Higini Cierco ("The Cierco Brothers") Respond To FinCEN's March 6, 2015 "311" Notice Of Finding Calling For A Withdrawal
WASHINGTON, May 6, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- The Cierco Brothers have responded to FinCEN's March 6, 2015 "311" Notice of Finding, respectfully but unequivocally disagreeing with FinCEN's assertion that the BPA Group is a financial institution of primary money laundering concern. In a comment letter filed with FinCEN on behalf of the Cierco Brothers by the Washington-based law firm, Lewis Baach pllc, they submit that the Notice of Filing should be withdrawn and no Final Rule should be issued based upon the Notice.
The Cierco Brothers argue in their comment letter that, "Had FinCEN engaged in a focused, confidential dialogue they may have reasonably concluded that filing a 311 notice would be precipitous and disproportionate. The Notice appears to be largely based on events that occurred some years in the past and were sub judice. No imminent risk is identified, but even if the risk were imminent, the Cierco brothers would have addressed them immediately."
FinCEN's finding came as complete shock to the Cierco brothers, their 1000 employees, and their more than 25,000 depositors across 31 branches in three countries. The notice was particularly surprising considering the fact that since 2003, as Non-Executive Co-Chairmen of the BPA Group, the Cierco Brothers approved the hiring of two of the world's leading external auditors, KPMG and Deloitte, to conduct annual anti-money laundering ("AML") audits. These auditors conducted full, open-file reviews to ensure BPA's compliance with Andorra's AML laws, and the auditors, as well as government regulators, approved BPA's Compliance program.
The letter states that, "The Cierco Brothers were not day-to-day managers [of the BPA Group] but they set a general strategy of responsible growth, hired qualified professionals including compliance professionals, and relied on reports of management, third-party auditors, and regulators with respect to appropriate systems and controls. Far from seeking to avoid scrutiny of their operations by confining their business to a small country like Andorra, they were the first Andorran bank to move into the Spanish market, accepting willingly the disclosure, compliance and regulatory requirements expected of financial institutions operating in the European Union."
Eric Lewis of Lewis Baach stated, "The Cierco Brothers received regular confirmation from leading auditors and their regulators that BPA complied with applicable AML laws and regulations."
Mr. Lewis continues, "FinCEN failed to consult or try to address whatever issues it had identified and failed to gather and objectively evaluate the extensive legitimate business of BPA. Had it consulted readily available sources of information here with regard to legitimate business and the impact of the measures on the hundreds of diligent employees and thousands of depositors business, the conclusions and the remedies should have been different."
The letter states, "In its most recent audits, covering the 2012 and 2013 calendar years, KPMG and Deloitte's AML audits show a bank with robust, and constantly upgrading AML controls, fully consistent with the letter and spirit of the relevant legal and regulatory requirements. BPA utilized state of the art, internationally recognized databases and investigative tools with respect to the intake and ongoing monitoring of its clients."
The Cierco Brothers are committed to cooperating with FinCEN, as well as the Spanish and Andorran authorities, in order to understand what happened and to assist their employees, depositors and shareholders as the impact of this decision reverberates across the globe.
SOURCE Lewis Baach pllc
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