Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) has fined Merchantrade Asia and JAGS Money for failing to comply with sanctions screening requirements under the Money Services Business Act 2011 and related anti-money laundering policies.

Merchantrade was penalised RM29,000 on 6 March 2025 for oversight in sanctions screening procedures and delays in updating its sanctions database following the publication of the Domestic List.

Under subsection 74(3) of the Act and the AML/CFT policy document, reporting institutions must screen customers against the Domestic List, issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs, and the United Nations Security Council Resolutions (UNSCR) List.

They are also required to verify that potential matches are true matches to avoid false positives.

In response, Merchantrade has subscribed to a commercial database and introduced regular training for staff and agents.

JAGS Money was fined RM6,000 on 17 March 2025 for failing to promptly update its sanctions database and for not screening new customers against the Domestic List.

The company has since subscribed to update alerts and tightened its internal procedures.

BNM said the penalties considered the severity of the breaches, the companies’ past compliance records, and their corrective actions.

It noted that enforcement actions were taken in line with its enforcement approach and reiterated that all reporting institutions are expected to comply with targeted financial sanctions requirements.

Featured image credit: Edited from BNM