The Community Banking Corner provides useful tips for anti-money laundering/Bank Secrecy Act (AML/BSA) professionals in community banks to help them in their day-to-day jobs.
Our regular contributor, Carl Francois, is the senior vice president and the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) and fraud officer at Southern First Bank. Francois has over 14 years of experience in the BSA, the Office of Foreign Assets Control and fraud. In addition, he serves as a board member of the ACAMS Carolinas Chapter. If you would like to contribute to this column or have any topics you would like to suggest, email editor@acams.org.
As the battle over financial crimes evolves over time, it is of the utmost importance to leverage two key assets: technology and partnerships. Criminals are making ever more use of technology to perpetrate scams and frauds and launder money. In addition, they have learned to...
The scope of what is considered a “community bank” varies depending on with whom you speak. The Federal Reserve considers institutions with less than $10 billion in assets to fit the description of a community bank. However, smaller institutions have some challenges that larger institutions...
Account closures, de-risking and de-banking are all phrases heard throughout the banking landscape in our current era. While the process seems simple enough at face value, it can be an onerous process to navigate. Closures can occur for many reasons: Fraud, unacceptable risk (money laundering,...
Have you ever wondered how Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) officers spend their working days and what they think about? Maybe you would love the opportunity to pick their brain on the issues at large. You are in luck! I had the pleasure of interviewing a...
Any professional in the Bank Secrecy Act, anti-money laundering (AML), Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) space is quite familiar with the audit requirement outlined as a pillar of the USA PATRIOT Act. The annual audit serves as a litmus test of current processes, procedures...
Earlier this year, an article was published on why community banks should participate in 314(b).1 Covered in the preceding article were reasons why some institutions may choose not to participate and the attempt to dispel each reason. As a refresher, in case you missed the...
It is undeniable that cryptocurrencies (or crypto-assets in general) are reshaping the world fast and that we will witness more changes in various aspects of life, especially finance. But let us not forget that it is not only the cryptocurrencies (or crypto-assets in general) that...
Know your customer (KYC) is a familiar topic for all banks, regardless of size. Traditionally for community banks, this was one of the easier blanks to fill in. Being local generally meant a community banker knew their customer personally or at least through easily verifiable...
Section 314 of the USA PATRIOT Act, which was passed back in 2001, is a vital portion of the legislation. Anyone who had been in the anti-money laundering/Bank Secrecy Act (AML/BSA) space prior to 2001 understands how significant this change was to the industry. Section...
Cybersecurity may have been an issue that many considered “IT’s problem” years ago. However, with a never-ending stream of breaches, hacks and attacks making the news, it is and should be top of mind for all bankers. The financial system is a prime target for...
Our regular contributor, 
