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WASHINGTON – TD Bank (TSX:TD) is paying US$52.5 million to settle U.S. civil charges after regulators accused the bank of failing to report suspicious activity in accounts linked to a US$1.2-billion Ponzi scheme.

The settlements were announced by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.

The OCC said TD Bank failed to file suspicious activity reports to the government on the accounts of Scott Rothstein, a former Florida lawyer now serving a 50-year prison sentence for the Ponzi scheme.

The SEC said the bank deceived investors by saying that it had restricted Rothstein’s transfers of money in the accounts.

TD Bank is paying a US$37.5-million penalty to the OCC and a $15-million penalty to the SEC.

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