Leaked US government documents have revealed that big banks have defied money laundering crackdowns by moving large sums of illicit cash for individuals and criminal networks, according to the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ).

The records found five global banks — JPMorgan, HSBC, Standard Chartered Bank, Deutsche Bank and Bank of New York Mellon — profited from illicit funds after US authorities had already fined these financial institutions for money laundering and terrorism financing failures.

In some cases the banks kept moving illicit funds even after US officials warned them they’d...