Sweden’s financial regulator has initiated a review into Swedbank’s compliance with anti-money-laundering (AML) regulations, focusing on whether the bank’s customer vetting processes were adequate, reported Reuters.
The Financial Supervisory Authority (FSA) said that the probe will assess Swedbank’s due diligence measures from December 2023 through November 2025.
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“How banks and financial companies counter risks of money laundering and terrorist financing in their operations is a priority issue in the FSA’s supervision in 2026,” the watchdog was quoted by the news agency as saying.
The regulator did not clarify if this latest investigation is a standard procedure or driven by specific concerns.
This development follows the closure of a US Department of Justice inquiry earlier this year, which ended without penalties for Swedbank.
That investigation was linked to allegations of money laundering stemming from issues initially discovered at Danske Bank and involved Swedbank’s activities in the Baltic region.
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By GlobalDataSwedbank disclosed that the US probe, which began in 2019, focused on historical failures related to anti-money-laundering practices, reported the Wall Street Journal.
The bank also noted an ongoing investigation by the New York State Department of Financial Services, but said it was not yet possible to determine any potential impact or timeframe for resolution.
The Estonian branch of Swedbank has previously faced scrutiny from both American and European authorities over risk management shortcomings connected to suspected money laundering.
These events led to leadership changes at the bank, with chief executive Birgitte Bonnesen leaving her post in 2019 and Chairman Lars Idermark resigning shortly afterwards.
