Task force formed over BB fund heist

A task force has been formed to expedite recovery of the $81m fund that was stolen from Bangladesh Bank’s account at the Federal Reserve Bank at New York.

 

The Banks and Financial Institutions Division issued a circular signed by deputy secretary Md Razanul Huda,  in this regard on Wednesday.

 

Earlier the Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) on Tuesday terminated branch manager Maia Santos-Deguito and assistant manager Angela Torres for falsification of documents in connection to the $81-million money laundering scheme.

 

RCBC counsel Macel Fernandez-Estavillo said that the top two officials of the bank's Jupiter branch also violated bank policies and procedures, reports philstar.

 

"The bank said Deguito and Toress' breaches facilitated the alleged laundering of $81 million of remittance that is now being investigated by the Senate and other government agencies," Estavillo said in a statement.

 

The bank is also set to file charges against Deguito and Torres by next week, the lawyer said.

 

Estavillo added that other branch and bank officials involved in the case may face sanctions ranging from termination to suspension when the bank completes its internal investigation.

 

Meanwhile, the Anti-Money Laundering Council has filed charges against businessmen Kim Wong and Weikang Xu for their alleged involvement in the banking heist.

 

The Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. branch manager Maia Santos-Deguito takes her seat before testifying for the second time before the Philippine Senate probe into how about $81 million of Bangladesh's stolen funds were transmitted online to four private accounts at its branch in suburban Pasay city, south of Manila, Philippines.

 

The laundering through the Philippines of $81 million stolen by hackers from a U.S. Federal Reserve account is adding to pressures on the Bangladesh to fix loopholes in its financial regime.