Dutch regulator fines real estate firm €1.7 million over money laundering violations

The Dutch Authority for the Financial Markets (AFM) has imposed two fines totaling 1.7 million euros on Achmea Real Estate for serious violations of the Anti-Money Laundering and Anti-Terrorist Financing Act (Wwft), the regulator announced Tuesday.

The offenses reportedly occurred between 2018 and 2022, during the period when Achmea's real estate arm operated under the name Syntrus Achmea Real Estate & Finance. At the time, the company managed investment funds and offered mortgage products. The AFM investigation found that Syntrus Achmea failed to report 11 unusual transactions to the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) on time, as required by Dutch law.

The FIU is the national body responsible for analyzing transactions that may be linked to money laundering or other criminal activity.

In addition to the late reporting, the company failed to perform adequate ongoing due diligence on the flagged transactions and the clients involved. The AFM characterized the violations as “serious breaches” of the Wwft. Investigators also found that in some instances, red flags for money laundering risks—such as mortgage fraud—were present.

According to the AFM, Achmea Real Estate has initiated an improvement plan to bring its operations into full compliance with anti-money laundering regulations. While the real estate division is no longer involved in the mortgage sector, it continues to manage property on behalf of pension funds and other institutional investors. In 2024, Achmea separated its mortgage and real estate businesses.

Achmea Real Estate acknowledged the violations and accepted the penalties. As a result, the original fines—set at 1 million euros each—were reduced to 850,000 euros apiece.

In a written response, Achmea expressed regret over the violations: “We regret these errors. They should not have happened and are not consistent with the values and professional standards of the company.” The company added that its transaction reporting and client due diligence procedures now fully comply with the law.