Fed hits American Express with enforcement action over money-laundering controls

Rates Thursday, October 8, 2026 · Updated Oct 8, 2026 16:54

The Federal Reserve announced an enforcement action against American Express on Thursday, citing the firm's failure to sufficiently detect and report suspicious activity related to money laundering.

Why it matters: The order puts one of the largest US card issuers under a federal compliance regime and pairs with a separate OCC action against its bank subsidiary, a sign of tougher anti-money-laundering scrutiny of big consumer lenders.

Data as of Federal Reserve press release issued for 4:30pm EDT October 8, 2026, opened and read directly. The OCC's separate action against the bank subsidiary was not reviewed in this pass.

The Federal Reserve Board on Thursday announced an enforcement action against American Express Company, saying the firm failed to sufficiently detect and report certain suspicious activity related to money laundering. The Board also identified significant deficiencies in how the firm’s enterprise-wide anti-money-laundering program was implemented, in particular at its subsidiary national bank.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the primary federal regulator of that bank, issued a separate enforcement action against it, the Fed said. The Board’s action is intended to ensure the firm operates in compliance with all US laws and regulations.

Sources

Federal Reserve Board announces enforcement action against American Express Company to address, among other things, the firm's failure to sufficiently detect and report certain suspicious activity related to money laundering · Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System · 2026-10-08