On November 24, 2023, Contis Group, a financial services company based in the UK (acquired by Solaris, a German Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS) fintech), received a fine from the Bank of Lithuania for non-compliance with standards related to anti-money laundering, terrorist financing, information security, and business continuity risk management.

To know more, click here https://www.fcctimes.com/2023/11/24/bank-of-lithuania-fines-contis-e840000-for-aml-cft-violations-and-security-lapses/?utm_source=LinkedInText&utm_medium=FCCFlash_2_01Dec

Contis has previously undergone regulatory scrutiny. In April, the Bank of Lithuania imposed a fine of 180,000 euros on the company for its failure to adequately protect client funds and violations of capital requirements.

In enforcing the penalty, the Lithuanian central bank accuses Contis of failing to establish sufficient anti-money laundering provisions for electronic money distributors. The company delegated sanctions screening to partner institutions but failed to ensure proper execution. The Bank identified significant gaps in Contis’ procedures for identifying money laundering and terrorist financing risks.

The bank also found that implemented scenarios were insufficient to promptly identify unusual client activities, highlighting a lack of human resources for effective monitoring. Additionally, the firm faced criticism for inadequate business continuity preparations.

Contis has been directed to rectify its system by April next year and has been prohibited from forming new business relationships with distributors and intermediaries. The UK-based Contis was acquired by the German Banking-as-a-Service platform Solaris in January 2022.