Peoples Bank issued consent order
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The parent of Peoples Bank in Munster has agreed to a consent order from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and the Indiana Department of Financial Institutions. The order accuses Finward Bancorp of “unsafe and unsound banking practices” related to the Bank Secrecy Act, or BSA.
The BSA requires financial institutions to assist government agencies in detecting and preventing money laundering by filing reports of large cash transactions and reporting suspicious activity that might signal criminal activity, according to the U.S. Treasury Department.
Specific details regarding the practices the bank is accused of were not provided. A request for more information by Inside INdiana Business was not returned.
In a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Finward said consenting to the issuance of the order is not an admission or denial of any wrongdoing.
Click here to view the full consent order.
The bank said the order followed a February 2023 examination of the bank’s practices, and it has since “taken steps to comply with the requirements of the order prior to its effectiveness.”
Some of the actions Finward is required to undertake as a result of the consent order include:
- Strengthening the board of directors’ oversight of the bank’s BSA activities
- Developing, adopting, and implementing a revised BSA compliance program
- Developing a revised system of internal controls designed to ensure full compliance with the BSA
- Retaining management qualified to oversee the bank’s BSA compliance program
- Developing, adopting, and implementing a revised BSA training program
- Developing, adopting, and implementing a revised suspicious activity reporting program
- Ensuring that all reports required by the BSA are accurately and properly filed
The bank said it will also develop and implement a written plan to review past account and transaction activity to determine whether suspicious activity was properly identified and reported.
A spokesperson told IIB that the bank is not currently under investigation “and the consent order did not stem from such proceedings.”
Finward said the order will remain in effect until it is modified, terminated, suspended, or set aside by the FDIC and DFI.