ALEXANDRIA, Va. – The NCUA issued a cease and desist order Oct. 21 against Korean American Catholics FCU on "substantial" Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) violations. According to the NCUA, the credit union board "consented to the order and admitted there was a reasonable, factual basis for the regulatory violations stated." These include failing to complete Currency Transaction Reports (CTRs) and Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) on several member account transactions that involved cash structuring activity. The order requires Korean American Catholics FCU to: * fully investigate potential violations of the BSA regarding CTR and SAR requirements, which occurred between Jan. 1, 1997 and May 20, 2002. * develop a compliance program through an independent BSA compliance expert that ensures the CU is compliant with its BSA policy, BSA, and NCUA Rules and Regulations; * provide BSA compliance training for employees; * comply with BSA requirements that prohibit the CU from notifying a member when the CU is providing FinCEN with a SAR on that members; and * engage an independent outside auditor to perform a full compliance and internal control audit of the CU.