Five commercial banks in Kenya, KCB Group KCB.NR, Equity EQTY.NR, Co-op Bank Kenya COOP.NR, StanChart Kenya SCBK.NR and Diamond Trust DTK.NR have been fined with 385 shillings ($3.75 million) resulting from the violation of anti-money laundering laws which involved a theft of almost $100 million from the National Youth Service (NYS). This was the second time the banks had been fined, the first being a fine of almost $4 million from the central bank due to the banks’ failure to report suspicious transactions. The chief prosecutor in Kenya had said that his office reserve the right to prosecute the banks in the future.
During investigations, it was revealed that the five banks failed in putting in place a sufficient system for fighting money laundering and the required know-your-customer policy. Chief prosecutor Noordin Haji said he was not deferring prosecuting the banks to see if they met a deadline to improve their practices.
