Absa Bank Kenya has committed to working with the Central Bank of Kenya to resolve its forex exchange glitch that saw the regulator suspend its license for a week.
The re-branded lender acknowledged receipt of official notice from CBK suspending foreign exchange dealer license from 9 April 2020 until 15 April 2020.
According to Absa Kenya, it decided to proactively cancel the two foreign exchange forward transactions concerned immediately CBK raised its concerns.
In a statement, Absa Kenya said the transactions were being executed on behalf of highly reputable global financial institutions, which are regulated in line with best international practice, adding they were executed at prevailing market rates.
''The decision to cancel the transactions was taken to demonstrate our willingness to address fully the concerns of the regulator,’’ Absa Kenya said.
The lender said it embrace a culture that endeavors to comply with national and international regulations at all times, adding that it has stringent and world bench-marked Anti-Money Laundering/CFT and KYC policies which are applied rigorously in its operations.
‘’We are in ongoing consultations and discussions with the Central Bank of Kenya to fully resolve all matters raised in the shortest possible time,’’ the listed lender said.
Yesterday, the regulator said Absa must undertake several corrective measures among them putting in place a robust framework to ensure all relevant documents for such forex transactions are available as required and further ensure the AML/CFT and KYC requirements are adhered to by April 15, 2020.
