The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has imposed over Rs 59 million penalties on one bank during the Quarter ending December 31, 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.

As per details of significant enforcement actions by SBP, Habib Metropolitan Bank was penalized Rs 59.516 million after the bank was found in violations of instructions/ regulations pertaining to AML/CFT.

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.

SBP stated that these actions are based on deficiencies in the compliance of regulatory instructions and do not constitute a comment on the financial soundness of the entity.

It is pertinent to mention that during the Quarter ending September 30, 2020, the State Bank has imposed over Rs 271 million penalties on four banks for non-compliance with legal or regulatory requirements.