24 September 2026
Following an on-site inspection carried out by the Insurance Authority (IA) under the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing Ordinance (Cap. 615) (AMLO)1,2, FWD Life Insurance Company (Bermuda) Limited (the Company) has been ordered to pay a pecuniary penalty of HK$19.5 million.
The IA found shortcomings in the Company’s payor identification controls on third party payments, controls on potentially suspicious transactions including cash payments, data capture and screening of Politically Exposed Persons, and conducting customer due diligence on particular transactions.
The Company has implemented a series of measures to address the identified issues and to bolster its governance, controls and oversight. The IA acknowledges the Company’s early acceptance of the findings and its commitment to remediating the identified issues and enhancing its governance and controls. In addition, the Company confirmed that, after enhanced reviews, there had been no onboarding of non-eligible customers as a result of delayed detection.
All authorized insurers carrying on long term business must have in place effective anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing controls and procedures to combat money laundering and terrorist financing activities which is vital to maintaining Hong Kong’s position as an international finance centre.
Statement of Disciplinary Action
Ends
Notes:
1 The disciplinary action is taken under section 21 to AMLO. AMLO imposes customer due diligence and record-keeping requirements on financial institutions, including authorized insurers carrying on long term business. The IA is the relevant authority under the AMLO in relation to authorized insurers and licensed insurance intermediaries carrying on regulated activities in respect of long term business.
2 The Company contravened sections 5(1), 10(2), 15, 19(1), 19(3) and 23 of Schedule 2 to AMLO.