This archive report was first published on 23 September 2019.
On September 23, 2019, Tanzania's central bank imposed fines totaling over $800,000 on five commercial banks for violating anti-money laundering rules.
The Bank of Tanzania (BoT) stated that the fines were issued due to the banks' failure to conduct proper customer due diligence and file suspicious transaction reports to the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU).
The largest fine was imposed on I&M Bank, amounting to 655 million Tanzanian shillings ($284,782.61), followed by Equity Bank (580 million shillings), UBL Bank (325 million shillings), Habib African Bank (175 million shillings), and African Banking Corporation (145 million shillings).
The sanctioned banks have three months to implement anti-money laundering measures, including disciplinary action against staff members involved in opening implicated deposit accounts contrary to Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements.
Tanzania has strengthened regulatory oversight over commercial banks and other financial institutions in recent years, with the central bank imposing hefty fines on lenders that fail to comply with regulations.
The country's financial services sector has been affected by a spike in bad loans, which has stifled the growth of credit to the private sector.
Since 2017, Tanzania's central bank has revoked the licenses of at least nine banks, citing the need to safeguard the stability of the sector.
