The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has imposed over Rs 271 million penalties on four banks during the Quarter ending September 30, 2020, for non-compliance with legal or regulatory requirements.

The SBP takes supervisory enforcement actions against those institutions that fail to comply with legal or regulatory requirements and these actions may range from the imposition of penalties, administrative and financial sanctions, and reference to concerned law enforcement/prosecution agencies.

According to details issued by State Bank, among the banks' Bank Islami Ltd faced the highest penalty of Rs 116.269mn in procedural violations in the areas of CDD/KYC, General Banking Operations & Asset Quality, in addition to penal action the bank has been advised to strengthen its processes to avoid recurrence of such violations.

Albaraka Bank (Pakistan) Ltd was second on the list with a penalty of Rs 86.119n in violations in the areas of AML/CFT, FX Operations & General Banking Operations. In addition to penal action, the bank has been advised to conduct an internal inquiry on breaches of regulatory instructions and take disciplinary action against the delinquent officials.

Soneri Bank Ltd was third on the list with the penalty of Rs 59.234mn for procedural violations in the area of CDD/KYC In addition to penal action the bank has been advised to strengthen its processes to avoid the recurrence of such violations. Lastly, the Bank of Punjab was penalized Rs 10mn for procedural violations in the area of General Banking Operations.