The central bank of China and regulators in the country are probing reports that claim Bank of China has violated laws about overseas money transfers, Bloomberg reported, citing unnamed government officials.

The central bank of China and regulators in the country are probing reports that claim Bank of China has violated laws about overseas money transfers, Bloomberg reported, citing unnamed government officials.

This publication was unable to reach either the People’s Bank of China or Bank of China about the matter at the time of going to press.

As of the close of business yesterday, shares in Bank of China were down by around 0.9 per cent.

Such claims of money laundering come at a time when banks around the world have been under the spotlight over breaches of money transfer rules in recent days. The most high-profile case of AML violations recently is that of Paris-listed BNP Paribas, which has been hit by the US for $8.97 billion fine for breaching sanctions against blacklisted countries.

The news service report said the investigation focuses on whether Bank of China violated regulations in its operations or aided money laundering. Starting an investigation doesn’t mean the Beijing-based bank has done anything wrong, it continued. Bank of China has denied a report by China Central Television claiming that it circumvented rules by helping customers transfer unlimited amounts of yuan overseas and convert it into other currencies.

The report said Chinese foreign-exchange rules cap the maximum amount of yuan that individuals are allowed to convert into other currencies at $50,000 each year and ban them from transferring yuan abroad directly.

The report said People’s Bank of China governor Zhou Xiaochuan said it was too early to comment on the state television report.