The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has slapped heavy fines on four banks for violating its rules and regulations, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.
According to a document released by SBP's Banking Supervision Department on Wednesday the total amount of penalties was Rs83.157 million.
The banks were found guilty of breaching the standards of Know Your Customer (KYC), foreign exchange, and general banking operations.
The State Bank said that the penalties were based on deficiencies in the compliance of regulatory instructions and did not reflect the financial soundness of the entities.
United Bank Limited was fined Rs26.5 million for violating the regulatory instructions pertaining to FX and General Banking Operations. The SBP advised the bank to strengthen its controls and ensure meticulous compliance with the regulatory instructions.
The Bank of Punjab was fined Rs21.569 million for violating the regulatory instructions pertaining to general banking operations. The SBP advised the bank to strengthen its systems and controls to avoid the recurrence of regulatory violations.
JS Bank Limited was fined Rs18.51 million for violating regulatory instructions pertaining to CDD/KYC, FX, and General Banking Operations. The SBP advised JSBL to strengthen its systems and controls to avoid the recurrence of regulatory violations.
Allied Bank Limited was fined Rs16.578 million for violating the regulatory instructions pertaining to General Banking Operations. The SBP advised the bank to improve its internal processes in order to avoid violations in the future.
Moreover, the State Bank has also instructed these individual banks to address these issues immediately.
Reporter Ashraf Khan