TD chief says probes show need for better staff accountability

Toronto-Dominion Bank employees need to take more accountability and act with more urgency on risks, Chief Executive Officer Bharat Masrani said, after the Canadian bank was rocked by sweeping money-laundering investigations in its US business. “The big lesson is you can’t take anything for granted,” Masrani said Wednesday at a financial-industry conference hosted by Bank of Nova Scotia in Toronto. Toronto-Dominion faces allegations that it failed to catch money laundering and other financial crimes at multiple US branches across several states. It’s under investigation by the Department of Justice as well as financial regulators, and said last month it hopes to reach a “global resolution” of the matter by the end of this year. Read More: TD Has First Loss in Decades After Hit From Laundering Probe After “bad actors were able to exploit the bank,” Masrani said Toronto-Dominion needed to “deepen accountabilities for such types of risk” throughout its front-line staff as well as among those working in control and audit functions. The goal is to “make sure folks understand this risk right through the organization and act with urgency,” he said. “It’s easy in a bank of our size to sometimes not look at accountabilities as clearly as we should,” he said. “Time is precious and you’ve got to deal with issues very quickly.” ‘I’m Responsible’ Some TD employees lost their jobs in the wake of the US probes — the bank fired more than a dozen people who worked with retail clients for code-of-conduct violations, and has also replaced about 10 people in senior legal and compliance roles. Others also saw their pay cut as a result, Masrani said. “Listen, I’m the CEO of the bank,” he said. “I’m responsible. I own it.” Asked Wednesday about his own future at the bank, he said only that TD has a “robust” succession planning process and a “terrific bench” of senior leaders. Toronto-Dominion expects to pay about $3 billion in total penalties to settle the US probes. Masrani said the bank spends about C$30 billion ($22.2 billion) on annual non-interest expenses and called the amount of the penalties “manageable.” The bank sold some of its stake in Charles Schwab Corp. last month to fund a provision it took against the future fines. --By Christine Dobby ( Bloomberg )

TD chief says probes show need for better staff accountability

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TD chief says probes show need for better staff accountability

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78% of regional FIs say AI can help find new business

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