This is a Big Deal

Standard Charter bank has just agreed to pay a $300 million fine for money laundering, which really is pocket change, but they have also had their dollar clearing rights suspended which is a very big deal:

British banking giant Standard Chartered is a repeat offender, at least in the eyes of New York’s top financial regulator, which fined the bank $300 million and suspended its ability to convert currency for violating a money laundering settlement.

On Tuesday, the New York Department of Financial Service said Standard Chartered had not flagged a series of wire transfers from clients and locales at high risk for money laundering, running afoul of a 2012 agreement the bank inked with the regulator. Back then, the bank shelled out a total of $667 million to state and federal authorities for allegedly processing $250 billion in transactions for Iranian banks in violation of U.S. sanctions.

The suspension of dollar clearing privileges means that they can no longer transfer dollars into and out of the United States on their own, but have to use an intermediary who still has dollar clearing privileges, which adds cost and complexity, which serves to blow a huge hole in their business, since most transaction settle in dollars.

Benjamin Lawsky, head of the NY Department of Financial Service is arguably the most aggressive, and most effective, financial regulator in the US right now.

Yves Smith at Naked Capitalism believe that these actions have the potential to uncover the systemic rot in our banking system, but I am not as optimistic as she it.
In any case, more of this.