Danske Bank, Bank Fraud, New York 2024

Danske Bank, a global financial institution headquartered in Denmark, has pleaded guilty to bank fraud in the United States. The bank agreed to forfeit $2 billion to resolve the investigation into its fraud on U.S. banks.

According to court documents, Danske Bank defrauded U.S. banks regarding its Estonian subsidiary's customers and anti-money laundering controls to facilitate access to the U.S. financial system for its high-risk customers, who resided outside of Estonia – including in Russia.

The Justice Department will credit nearly $850 million in payments that Danske Bank makes to resolve related parallel investigations by other domestic and foreign authorities.

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said, 'For years, Danske Bank lied and deceived U.S. banks to pump billions of dollars of suspicious and criminal funds through the U.S. financial system.'

Danske Bank pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit bank fraud and will implement and maintain a revamped compliance program and AML controls.

The bank's guilty plea and $2 billion penalty demonstrate that the United States will fiercely guard the integrity of its financial system from tainted foreign money.

The case is a reminder that banks and other financial institutions around the world must play by the rules if they want to use the U.S. financial system.

Key Facts:

Defendant: Danske Bank A/S

Criminal Charges: Conspiring to commit bank fraud

City and State: New York

Exact Date: Not specified

Sentence or Outcome: Pleaded guilty, agreed to forfeit $2 billion

Dollar Amounts: $2 billion forfeiture, $850 million in payments to resolve related investigations

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/pr/danske-bank-pleads-guilty-fraud-us-banks-multi-billion-dollar-scheme-access-us