Australia’s 2nd-Largest Bank Westpac ‘Shattered’ Over Money-Laundering Lawsuit

Australia’s 2nd-Largest Bank Westpac ‘Shattered’ Over Money-Laundering Lawsuit
A woman walks past an illuminated logo for Australia's Westpac Bank in Sydney, Australia, on Sept. 6, 2017. Reuters/Steven Saphore/File Photo
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SYDNEY—Westpac Banking Corp said it was “shattered” by a money-laundering lawsuit over payments that it unwittingly facilitated among suspected child exploiters and apologized to all affected as it faced a firestorm of shareholder criticism on Thursday.

“We are shattered by what has happened,” Chairman Lindsay Maxsted told about 600 investors at the annual shareholder meeting in Sydney of Australia’s second-biggest bank.