Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. OFAC Settlement: $23.9K (2013)

Between December 12, 2007, and March 11, 2010, Wells Fargo maintained accounts for and processed 58 transactions totaling $22,211.94 on behalf of Claudia Aguirre Sanchez, who was designated by OFAC pursuant to the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act, 21 U.S.C. 1901 et seq., on December 12, 2007. Wells Fargo had opened the accounts prior to that designation under the name "Claudia Aguirre." At account opening, the customer provided a U.S. address, a U.S. Social Security Number, and a date of birth that matched Aguirre Sanchez's date of birth on the SDN List.

Separately, between November 14, 2008, and May 6, 2010, Wells Fargo maintained accounts for and processed 746 transactions totaling $53,780.39 on behalf of Carlos Antonio Ruelas Topete, designated under the Kingpin Act on January 12, 2005. These accounts were opened subsequent to the designation under the name "Carlos A. Ruelas." As with the first relationship, the date of birth provided at account opening matched Ruelas Topete's date of birth on the SDN List. Across both relationships, Wells Fargo processed 804 transactions in apparent violation of the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Sanctions Regulations, 31 C.F.R. part 598.

OFAC determined that Wells Fargo voluntarily self-disclosed the apparent violations and that the case was non-egregious. The total base penalty amount was $37,996. The settlement amount of $23,937 reflects OFAC's consideration of facts and circumstances under the General Factors in 31 C.F.R. part 501, app. A. Mitigation was extended because Wells Fargo had not received a penalty notice or Finding of Violation from OFAC in the five years preceding the transactions giving rise to the apparent violations; the apparent violations could have been licensed by OFAC under licensing policy existing at the time; Wells Fargo cooperated throughout the investigation, including by signing a tolling agreement; and Wells Fargo took significant remedial steps, including specific measures to bolster its screening processes, following discovery of the apparent violations.

The case highlights the compliance risk of relying solely on name-based OFAC screening without incorporating date of birth. Wells Fargo's accounts for both designated individuals were opened under name variants that did not exactly match the SDN List entries, but the dates of birth provided at account opening matched the SDN List entries for both individuals. Incorporating date of birth into OFAC screening procedures would have flagged these relationships at or around the time of designation. OFAC treated the absence of date-of-birth screening as an aggravating factor, and Wells Fargo responded by taking specific remedial steps to bolster its screening processes following discovery of the apparent violations.

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