NASSAU, BAHAMAS — US authorities recently seized millions of dollars held by Lyford-Cay-based Deltec Bank as part of an investigation into international money laundering, wire fraud, and bank fraud.
Deltec Bank in a statement posted to its website said that it has been “proactively cooperating with the related investigation of the US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia in order to provide information and assistance consistent with applicable laws.”
The US investigation specifically targeted “international criminal money laundering syndicates operating cryptocurrency investment and other wire fraud scams.” The Secret Service reportedly executed multiple seizure warrants to take control of funds from Deltec’s US accounts, with the warrants authorized back in June.
According to the disclosed documents, the fraudulent activities involved victims being deceived into transferring money into shell companies. These funds were then subjected to a series of transfers, primarily overseas, in an attempt to hide their origins, nature, ownership, and control.
The Secret Service was reportedly able to seize approximately $58 million from a custodial account opened by Deltec with Mitsubishi UFJ Trust in New York on behalf of its corporate clients.
US authorities allege that the seized bank account was involved in laundering profits from cryptocurrency-related investment fraud and various other fraudulent schemes. The victims in the scheme were fraudulently induced to transfer money into shell companies, and then the funds were allegedly funneled through a series of transfers, leading to overseas destinations, to conceal their true nature. Deltec Bank allegedly held funds from shell companies that had deceived clients through various fraudulent crypto schemes.
Federal law enforcement officials have identified at least 74 shell companies suspected of receiving funds derived from wire fraud.
In its statement, Deltec said that it was aware of the recent reports regarding seizure warrants issued by the US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia between June 12, 2023, and June 28, 2023, relating to funds at Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking, which were under the control of Deltec Bank.
“The seizure warrants relate to fraud charges against two individual defendants. According to the documents made public by the Eastern District of Virginia, the individual defendants directed the fraudulently obtained money into a number of bank accounts including, among others a Deltec Bank account at Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking, from which money was seized,” the bank said.
“Deltec Bank has been proactively cooperating with the related investigation of the US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia in order to provide information and assistance consistent with applicable laws. We believe that Deltec Bank has a legitimate claim, under US laws, that the cash seized from its account at Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking should be returned, and it intends to assert such claim as part of the forfeiture process defined under US law.”
The bank affirmed its commitment to abiding by all relevant anti-money laundering laws and maintains that all actions taken by the Bank are in line with applicable policies and regulatory requirements.
“As a leading global financial institution based in The Bahamas, Deltec Bank takes its responsibility to clients and the financial center as a whole very seriously and ensures that the highest standards of conduct are upheld. As a matter of practice, Deltec Bank continuously enhances its compliance and control framework, which is evident in our ability to proactively work with the authorities to report bad actors,” the bank said.
