Does it matter if a law is valid if the Government refuses to enforce it? For months, we have watched (and blogged on) courts grappling with the constitutionality and enforceability of the Corporate Transparency Act (“CTA”). While, as we have blogged most recently here, courts have produced mixed returns on the validity of the CTA, …
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Patriot Bank Enters Agreement with OCC to Address Regulatory Concerns
On February 20, 2025, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (“OCC”) announced that they had entered into a formal agreement with Patriot Bank, National Association (“Patriot Bank”), following a comprehensive examination that identified several regulatory deficiencies and unsafe banking practices. Key Takeaways OCC Agreement: Patriot Bank has entered into a formal agreement with the …
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CTA Litigation Updates: Federal Judge in Maine Rules CTA is Justified, While Texas Judge Allows CTA Enforcement; FinCEN Announces Enforcement and Updated Reporting Deadline
Developments concerning the enforceability and enforcement of the CTA came at a rapid clip this week. As things stand, the government may enforce the CTA pending a Texas court appeal in Smith v. U.S. Department of the Treasury. FinCEN indicated its intent to enforce the CTA but provided reporting companies with a revised deadline to …
Attorney General Bondi Overhauls Justice Priorities
The new administration has signaled that the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) will significantly shift its approach to criminal corporate enforcement. Specifically, on February 5, 2025, newly-confirmed United States Attorney General Pamela Bondi issued a memorandum (the “Bondi Memo”) that outlined the ways in which the DOJ will aim to eliminate cartels and transnational criminal organizations …
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Brink’s Global Services Faces Major Fines: The DOJ and FinCEN Crackdown on AML Violations
Brinks Global Services USA (“BGS USA”), a global leader in secure logistics, found itself at the center of a significant regulatory investigation due to its failure to meet anti-money laundering (“AML”) obligations. Specifically, BGS USA was found to have violated several provisions of the Bank Secrecy Act (“BSA”), leading to actions by both the U.S. …
Fifth Circuit Halts Nationwide Stay of CTA Enforcement
FinCEN Issues Corresponding But Limited Extensions of Reporting Deadlines The Fate of the CTA and Corresponding CDD Rule Remain in a State of Flux The Fifth Circuit has granted the government’s request to stay temporarily the order and injunction issued by the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, which had issued …
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FinCEN Concedes Nationwide Stay Regarding CTA Compliance and Enforcement
FinCEN has posted the following on its website in light of a recent litigation outcome regarding the Corporate Transparency Act (“CTA”) in the Eastern District of Texas. As we have blogged, and as the below notes, other federal district courts have reached opposite conclusions. Also, the Eleventh Circuit still needs to rule on related issues, …
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Fifth Circuit Rejects OFAC Designation of Tornado Cash Immutable Smart Contracts
In a closely watched and complicated case, Van Loon et al. v. Dep’t of the Treasury et al., the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ruled that the Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) cannot sanction Tornado Cash, “an open-source, crypto-transactions software protocol that facilitates anonymous transactions by obfuscating the origins and destinations …
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FinCEN Alert: Fraud Schemes Using Generative Artificial Intelligence to Circumvent Financial Institution’s Identity Verification, Authentication, and Due Diligence Controls
On November 13, 2024, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) issued FIN-2024-Alert004 to help financial institutions identify fraud schemes associated with the use of deepfake media created with generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) in response to increased suspicious activity reporting. “Deepfake media” are a type of synthetic content that use artificial intelligence/machine learning to create realistic …
FinCEN Issues Proposed Reporting Form for Residential Real Estate Deals
As we previously blogged, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Center (“FinCEN”) published Anti-Money Laundering Regulations for Residential Real Estate Transfers (“Final Rule”) regarding residential real estate. The Final Rule, set to go into effect on December 1, 2025, institutes a new Bank Secrecy Act reporting form – the “Real Estate Report” (“Report”) – which imposes a …
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