Lawbreaker Bank OK to Manage Retirements

Despite pleading guilty to violating U.S. sanctions against Sudan, Iran, and Cuba (and incurring a massive $8.9 billion penalty along the way), French bank BNP Paribas will be allowed to continue managing retirement plans in the United States. The Department of Labor issued the ruling Wednesday, saying that the decision came with numerous conditions, including a requirement for an independent auditor with unlimited access to computer systems, record books, and personnel. “The interests of [retirement] plan participants would be better protected by imposition of the stringent conditions set forth herein,” the agency said. “It is unclear that the denial of the exemption application would have any meaningful effect on BNP’s behavior.”