Banks faced the heaviest penalties by BaFin, the German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority
In recent years, Germany's financial regulatory authority, BaFin, has been actively imposing fines on banks for various breaches of regulations. These violations range from inadequate risk management and non-compliance with anti-money laundering regulations to misconduct in securities trading and failure to prevent market abuse.
One of the most notable fines was imposed on Deutsche Bank in February 2023, amounting to 23.05 million euros - the highest in BaFin's history. The fine was due to violations of organizational obligations of the Securities Trading Act in the distribution of currency derivatives in Spain.
Deutsche Bank wasn't the only institution to face significant penalties. Flatex Degiro Bank and the Flatex Degiro Financial Holding Group were fined around 1.1 million euros in 2023 due to severe deficiencies in their internal control system, supervisory reporting, and anti-money laundering prevention.
N26 and Fidor Bank also received million-euro fines for violations of the Anti-Money Laundering Act. N26 had to pay 4.25 million euros in 2021, and Fidor Bank had to pay around 3.75 million euros in 2022.
KT Bank, a subsidiary of the Kuwaiti-Turkish Participation Bank, was fined a total of 600,000 euros in 2024 for multiple violations of the Anti-Money Laundering Act and the Credit Institutions Act. KT Bank's infractions included failing to keep records of address and identification documents, not considering negative information in customer risk assessment, granting loans without fully examining the economic circumstances of the borrowers, and not filing suspicious activity reports.
Misr Bank Europe, a European subsidiary of Egyptian Banque Misr, was fined 375,000 euros in 2023 for exceeding the large credit limit set by the European Capital Adequacy Directive.
On average, BaFin imposes fines of around 21,000 euros in bank supervision. However, it's important to note that violations of the German Banking Act and Anti-Money Laundering Act most often result in fines, often involving late or non-submission of money laundering suspicion reports, changes in business organization or relationships, excesses in large credit limits or annual closures.
While a comprehensive list of all fines imposed by BaFin from 2016 to 2025 isn't readily available in the provided search results, detailed information can be found in BaFin's annual reports or specific enforcement announcements on its official website or regulatory news platforms. For a more exhaustive list, direct research from BaFin official publications or specialized financial regulatory databases would be required.
It's worth noting that some banks, like UniCredit, report regulatory risk factors and supervisory scrutiny but without explicit mention of BaFin fines in the provided document excerpt. Similarly, Indian banks like ICICI have faced increased scrutiny and fines by the Reserve Bank of India, but this is not related to BaFin.
In conclusion, BaFin has been actively enforcing regulations on banks, imposing fines for various violations. While a comprehensive list isn't easily accessible, detailed information can be found through direct research on BaFin's official publications or specialized financial regulatory databases.
Businesses in Germany's banking sector have faced numerous fines from BaFin, with violations ranging from Anti-Money Laundering Act breaches to non-compliance with the Securities Trading Act. The highest fine ever imposed by BaFin was on Deutsche Bank in 2023, amounting to 23.05 million euros.
