A major Canadian bank became a criminal in the United States

Canada’s second-largest bank “created an environment that allowed financial crime to thrive,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said Thursday. “By making its services convenient for criminals, it has become one.” TD Bank has been fined more than $3 billion after becoming the first bank in the U.S. to plead guilty to conspiracy to launder money had Globe and mail Reports.

• The bank of choice for criminals. Federal authorities say TD Bank’s lax practices between 2014 and 2023 made it the bank of choice for criminals, with one customer transferring $470 million in funds, including drug proceeds, through the bank’s branches, reports the AP. The man who bribed employees with $57,000 in gift cards repeatedly deposited more than $1 million in cash in a single day.
• “Fertile ground” for illegal activities. “From fentanyl and drug trafficking to terrorist financing and human trafficking, TD Bank’s chronic bankruptcies provided fertile ground for a variety of illegal activities to penetrate our financial system,” said Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo.