The US Department of the Treasury’s Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) recently reached a settlement with John Ryan, the former Chief Executive Officer of Rabobank, NA, who served as the bank’s CEO from September 2012 until December 2015. Under the settlement, without admitting or denying the OCC’s allegations, Ryan agreed to pay a $20,000 civil monetary penalty (CMP) and consented to a number of prohibitions, including a ban from participating in any manner of conduct involving the affairs of a financial institution.
According to the OCC’s Consent Order, between March and April of 2013, Ryan failed to “cause a material audit report to be provided to the OCC during an ongoing examination of the Bank’s Secrecy Act (“BSA”) program.” The OCC further alleged that Rabobank’s February 2018 guilty plea for conspiracy to obstruct an examination of a financial institution was, in part, based on allegations related to Ryan’s misconduct. As part of the bank’s settlement with the OCC, it paid a $500,000 fine and was assessed a $50 million CMP for failing to provide unfettered access to bank documents. Ryan’s conduct, according to the OCC, demonstrated his “continuing disregard for the safety and soundness of the Bank” that not only violated the law but was deemed by the OCC to be “an unsafe or unsound practice” and a breach of the fiduciary duty that he owed to the bank which caused the bank to suffer financial harm and other damages.
In July of 2019, the OCC announced a consent order of prohibition and $50,000 fine against Rabobank’s former general counsel Daniel Weiss for allegedly concealing a third party report assessing the bank’s program for compliance with the BSA. Weiss was also accused of making false statements to the OCC in violation of 18 USC 1011. Rabobank finalized the sale of Rabobank NA, its retail bank, in August of 2019.
OCC Consent Order | Rabobank Press Release (2019)