Bangladesh sues Manila-based bank in NY over heist

DHAKA,Bangladesh: Bangladesh’s central bank has filed a lawsuit in a New York court against a Philippine bank over the heist of $81 million from its account with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York in 2016.
Abu Hena Mohd. Rajee Hassan, head of Bangladesh Bank’s Finance Intelligence Unit, told The Associated Press Friday that the case was filed in the Southern District Court of New York against Rizal Commercial Banking Corp.
Court documents say hackers from North Korea used fraudulent orders on the SWIFT payments system to steal the money. The money was sent to accounts at the Philippines’ bank and then vanished into the casino industry in the Philippines. The complaint says the funds’ ultimate destination remains unclear.
Bangladesh Bank is seeking the $81 million plus damages and legal costs.