UPDATE 1-Dutch bank ABN Amro subject to money laundering investigation

Dutch bank ABN Amro has been placed under investigation by Dutch prosecutors relating over suspected money laundering, it said on Thursday.

Prosecutors said they believe that ABN Amro reported suspicious transactions too late or not at all over a lengthy period, adding that the bank failed to conduct proper investigation of client behaviour and did not sever ties with suspect clients in a timely fashion. They did not disclose over what period the alleged failures occurred.

The bank was notified of the investigation on Wednesday but was given no further detail on the scale of inquiries, said ABN spokesman Jeroen van Maarschalkerweerd. "We have no indication of the possible impact of this investigation," he said.

ABN Amro had warned in August that it faced possible money laundering fines after the Dutch central bank ordered it to review all retail clients in the Netherlands for possible money laundering or other criminal activities. Banks have been forced to keep better track of client behaviour after Dutch bank ING was forced to pay a record $900 million fine in September last year for failing to spot criminal activities financed through its accounts.