The Financial Supervisory Commission yesterday fined a number of local lenders a total of NT$11.8 million (US$362,230) for their poor internal controls and lack of legal compliance.
Taiwan Business Bank (
The employee was fired and faces legal proceedings, while the bank's Lujou (
Chinatrust Commercial Bank (
The commission punished the two lenders because it said their debt collection agencies were threatening, insulting and harassing debtors.
The financial watchdog again reminded banks of their obligation to choose the companies they outsourced their collection services to very carefully and to oversee their operations. The banks bore the responsibility if their agents infringed on their clients' rights and interests, the commission said.
Land Bank of Taiwan (
The lender's grave error had in part led to the controversial resignation of Shih Che (史哲) from his position as president of the Bureau of Labor Insurance, as his bank account was discovered to have suddenly swollen by NT$391 million.
Shin Kong Insurance Co (
The insurer was also punished for failing to report its actions to the authority, thereby violating the Insurance Law (保險法) that aims to reduce investment risks and facilitate development and construction, according to the regulator.
Meanwhile, the regulator said it would scrap an earlier punishment meted out to China Development Financial Holding Corp (
Daniel Wu (
China Development's appointment of Tsao Wei-shih (
The regulator said last month that it would overrule all applications by China Development, including business expansion and investment plans, until the company followed the regulator's ruling and dismissed Wu from its board and the boards of its affiliates for his failure to avoid a conflict of interest in a hostile takeover attempt.
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