MICHEL GANGNE/AFP/Getty Images(NEW YORK) — French banking institution BNP Paribas S.A. agreed to pay nearly $9 billion to settle claims that they illegally processed financial transactions for countries subject to U.S. economic sanctions.
The announcement was made on Monday by U.S. Department of Justice. “BNP Paribas went to elaborate lengths to conceal prohibited transactions, cover its tracks, and deceive U.S. authorities,” said Attorney General Eric Holder.
BNP had been accused of procession transactions totalling billions of dollars in the U.S. financial system for “Sudanese, Iranian and Cuban entities subject to U.S. economic sanctions.” The settlement marks the first time a global bank has pleaded guilty to large-scale violations of U.S. sanctions.
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