Taiwan regulator fines Bank SinoPac $570k over regulatory rules breach

The FSC also ordered the bank to suspend its president for three months.

The Financial Supervisory Commission of Taiwan has fined Bank SinoPac $570k (NT$18m) and issued the bank an official reprimand after discovering that the bank had induced customers to use loans to purchase wealth management products, conditioning the provision of housing loans on the sale of tied-in mortgage life insurance products, and improperly selling insurance products while conducting its insurance agent business. 

According to the FSC these deficiencies violated Article 45-1, paragraph 1 of the Banking Act, and also possibly disturbed the sound operations.

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The regulatory watchdog then ordered the bank to suspend the president from performance of duties for three months as well as suspend the top supervisor of its channel business for six months.

The FSC also ordered that the bank suspend for six months the conduct of brokered investments in overseas bonds for new customers and the sale of mortgage life insurance products that are tied to the bank's own housing loans and to stop, for approximately one month, all sales of new life insurance policies in its capacity as an insurance agent, until such time as the FSC recognizes that proper corrective actions have been taken.