UAE Central Bank Issues AED200 Million Penalty Against Foreign Bank's Local Branch

09:25 AM EDT, 10/30/2026 (MT Newswires) -- The Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates imposed a fine of 200 million Emirati dirhams on the local branch of an undisclosed foreign bank for breaching its regulatory commitments, according to a Friday release. The regulator's investigation found that the unit had "significant, repeated failures" concerning controls against money laundering and financing of terrorism and illegal organizations. Additional penalties of 500,000 dirhams and 300,000 dirhams were also issued against the chief executive officer and head of compliance and money laundering reporting officer, respectively. The foreign lender was also required to carry out a mandatory and independently validated remediation program, as well as a fit and proper re-assessment of the CEO and the chief compliance officer.