The European Central Bank (ECB) has imposed a fine of 12.2 million euros on the European branch of the American financial giant JP Morgan. This is the highest sanction in the institution's history. The decision was due to years of providing incorrect data regarding capital requirements, resulting from improper calculation of risk-weighted assets. These irregularities occurred from 2019 to 2024, preventing the supervisor from fully assessing the bank's risk profile.
Record sanction amount
The European Central Bank imposed a fine of 12.2 million euros, which is an absolute record in the history of supervision exercised by this institution over banks.
Gross errors in reporting
JP Morgan bank from 2019 to 2024 understated the value of risk-weighted assets, which prevented the regulator from correctly assessing its capital needs.
Allegation of gross negligence
The ECB in its official statement attributed gross negligence to the bank's European branch, pointing to systemic errors in 15 consecutive reports.
The European Central Bank announced in an official statement that it has imposed the highest monetary penalty in its supervisory history on JP Morgan. The amount of 12.2 million euros (approximately 14.3 million dollars) results from the identification of serious deficiencies in the reporting process of risk-weighted assets. According to investigative findings, the American bank provided understated values of these assets for five consecutive years, directly distorting the picture of its financial stability. The ECB, serving as the main supervisory authority in the eurozone, pointed to "gross negligence" on the part of the institution. These errors persisted continuously from 2019 to 2024, and their scale prevented controllers from obtaining full insight into the bank's risk profile. It is worth emphasizing that the fine consists of two separate penalties for specific violations of regulatory requirements. Experts note that such a severe financial sanction is intended to send a clear signal to the entire banking sector that manipulations or errors in key indicators of capital adequacy will not be tolerated. The European Central Bank took over direct supervision of the largest banks in the eurozone in 2014 as part of the Single Supervisory Mechanism (SSM), which was a response to the European debt crisis. Representatives of JP Morgan have not yet formulated a broad position on this matter, but the amount of the fine has already been officially approved by the ECB Governing Council. This case sheds light on the challenges faced by global financial corporations in adapting their internal reporting systems to strict EU standards. The ECB's actions are part of a trend of tightening financial discipline following a series of global market turbulences, which forced regulators to be more meticulous in verifying data provided by systemically important banks. 12.2 mln euro — highest fine in ECB supervision history Fines imposed on JP Morgan by the ECB: Total sanction amount: 12.18, Violation 1: 6.09, Violation 2: 6.09 Liberal media emphasize the need for stronger regulation of the banking sector and protection of eurozone stability from corporate errors. | Conservative media may focus on bureaucratic burdens and the severity of penalties that impact the competitiveness of European markets.