On 17 November, OFAC announced a settlement agreement with BCC Corporate SA (BCCC), a Belgium-based credit card issuer and corporate service company, in connection with 1,818 violations of the Cuban Assets Control Regulations occurring between April 2009 and February 2014. During this time, BCCC was a wholly owned subsidiary of Alpha Card Group, which in turn owned 50% by the US financial institution American Express Company (AMEX). BCCC issued credit cards to corporate customers, which it permitted to be used for transactions in Cuba. Following its voluntary self-disclosure of the violations to OFAC, AMEX agreed to remit US$204,277 to settle potential liability for these violations.
