Malaysia's central bank said AEON Credit Service (M) (KLSE:AEONCR) paid a 520,000 ringgit penalty on April 16 for failing to comply with targeted financial sanctions regulations.

In a Wednesday press release, the central bank said a supervisory review found that the lender had allowed a customer on Malaysia's domestic sanctions list to open an account and did not block the application despite identifying a match. It also failed to promptly freeze the account after confirming the customer's sanctioned status.

The regulator attributed the breaches to inadequate staff oversight and gaps in internal procedures.

AEON Credit has since strengthened its operating procedures and conducted additional staff training to improve compliance.