A group of Wall Street banks have been fined $549 million for using WhatsApp and other messaging apps to discuss business

• The SEC and CFTC have fined a group of Wall Street firms a combined $549 million.
• The firms admitted to employees using WhatsApp and other messaging services for business purposes.
• Wells Fargo, BNP Paribas, and BMO Capital Markets are among those facing the biggest fines.

A pair of regulatory agencies on Tuesday announced large fines for a group of Wall Street banks that admitted to using WhatsApp and other messaging services for business purposes.

The Securities and Exchange Commission is fining nine firms a total of $289 million, while the Commodity Futures Trading Commission issued $260 million in fines, for a combined sum of $549 million. Both agencies cited inadequate recordkeeping in compliance with regulations.

In recent years, regulators have cracked down on bankers' use of private messaging platforms for work-related purposes, such as WhatsApp and personal email addresses, which their employers are not able to effectively monitor.

"Compliance with the books and records requirements of the federal securities laws is essential to investor protection and well-functioning markets," Gurbir S. Grewal, director of the SEC's division of enforcement, said in a release.

"While some broker-dealers and investment advisers have heeded this message, self-reported violations, or improved internal policies and procedures, today's actions remind us that many still have not," he continued.

The Wednesday announcements bring the SEC's total fines related to the matter to $1.5 billion, while the CFTC's statement said it's imposed more than $1 billion in penalties to date.

The specific firms and fine amounts are detailed below.

SEC

• Wells Fargo: $125 million
• BNP Paribas: $35 million
• SG Americas Securities: $35 million
• BMO Capital Markets: $25 million
• Mizuho Securities USA: $25 million
• Houlihan Lokey: $15 million
• Moelis & Company: $10 million
• Wedbush Securities: $10 million
• SMBC Nikko Securities America: $9 million

CFTC

• BNP Paribas: $75 million
• Société Générale: $75 million
• Wells Fargo: $75 million
• Bank of Montreal: $35 million