Bank of America slapped with a $1.2B fine for anti-money-laundering breach, now it faces an investor class-action suit. What to do if you own stock

According to FinCEN, BofA failed to report $5 billion in “suspicious transactions,” some allegedly related to “chinese money laundering networks” and “illicit finance along the southwest border,” including cartels.

At the time, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent championed these penalties, claiming, “Today’s actions send a clear message that even the biggest financial institutions are not above the law.”​

Moneywise reached out to Bank of America for further comment. In response, a BofA spokesperson said, “Financial crime compliance is serious and we are responsible for getting it right. We worked with regulators to reach these penalty resolutions stemming from violations cited in the previously reported 2024 OCC Consent Order and FinCEN’s investigation.

“We have invested billions of dollars in technology and dedicated thousands of employees to combat financial crime, and our team is far along with and committed to completing the work required to address the issues raised by our regulators.”

Senator Warren wants a Capitol Hill grilling

​Despite being the third-largest penalty ever levied by the Treasury, some lawmakers balked at the number, claiming $1.21 billion was not severe enough. Senator Elizabeth Warren, who pushed for a criminal investigation, was chief among them.​

After the news broke, Warren took to X and called the payment a “slap on the wrist.” Rather than settling for these civil penalties, Warren wants BofA’s executives to face the music on Capitol Hill.

As she wrote on X, “CEO Brian Moynihan owes Congress answers, and we need a criminal investigation into the apparent violation of our anti-money-laundering laws. I’ve long said big bank CEOs should be held personally accountable if their banks break the law.”

Despite Warren’s petition to the Department of Justice, there’s no official word on a criminal investigation into Bank of America. However, a new securities class action lawsuit from the law firm Hagens Berman is hanging over Bank of America. For BofA shareholders, Hagens Berman’s litigation might offer a slight financial reprieve.

A salve for BofA shareholders?

Understandably, Bank of America’s stock hasn’t been so hot following the Treasury’s allegations. Shares in this bank slumped 4.5% after news of the $1.21 billion penalty broke. At the time of writing, BofA shareholders are down about 7.8% year to date. By comparison, the S&P 500 is up about 10.3% in 2026.

But even if your BofA shares are down, you may still get some cash back thanks to Hagens Berman’s lawsuit. Anyone who held BofA stock between August 1, 2025, and October 13, 2026, on a U.S. exchange and experienced “substantial losses” could file a claim to potentially recover damages.

Moneywise reached out to Hagens Berman for details on this pending lawsuit. According to Reed Kathrein, the Hagens Berman partner leading this BofA investigation, “Bank of America assured investors it had already completed significant steps toward fixing its anti-money-laundering deficiencies.

“Regulators have since found the bank willfully violated the Bank Secrecy Act and had not made sufficient progress since the 2024 Consent Order. We are investigating whether investors were misled.”

However, “substantial losses” isn’t a precise threshold, and there’s no word on just how much money claimants could receive. As Hagens Berman explained, “In general, to be eligible to participate in a class-action lawsuit, you must be able to demonstrate that you suffered financial losses as a result of the alleged wrongdoing and that your losses meet the criteria set by the court or law firm.”