DNB’s regulatory journey

: how regulators left a Norwegian bank out in the cold

Abstract

Anti-Money Laundering (AML) is an important societal and industry issue that demands great attention from financial institutions and regulators. This Thesis describes the situation of a market-leading Norwegian bank, DNB, and its challenges with achieving AML compliance. This Thesis aims to analyse DNB’s compliance challenges in the period after the 2018 AML Act to March 2024. The Case portrays a situation of prolonged non-compliance and regulatory scrutiny for DNB. It showcases DNB’s shortcomings with compliance and its struggles with meeting regulators’ expectations. It describes DNB’s efforts to restore reputational damages and to achieve compliance. It also draws on lessons from a competitor, Danske Bank, that faced similar regulatory challenges. The Literature Review introduces relevant topics applicable to the Case. It focuses on governance mechanisms, post-crisis communication strategies, and the role of agency conflicts in financial institutions. The Teaching Note describes how the Case can be used in a class setting. It gives an analytical perspective to the challenges faced by DNB, provides alternative recommendations, and gives an overview on the situation. This Thesis contributes to the understanding of compliance and regulations in financial institutions. It actualizes the consequences of non-compliance and firm efforts to achieve compliance. It demonstrates the importance of prioritizing compliance efforts, balancing different stakeholder interests, and discusses strategies for restorative reputation management.

Date of Award	1 Jul 2024
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	Universidade Católica Portuguesa
Supervisor	Nuno Guedes (Supervisor)