Corporate Exodus and Federal Penalties Collide in Rhode Island
In an editorial published by GoLocal, the editorial board details what it calls an ugly day for three of Rhode Island’s leading corporations: CVS, Hasbro, and Bank of America. Three of the state’s most prominent corporate leaders—CVS, Hasbro, and Bank of America—faced severe economic and reputational blows in a single fortnight, laying bare a painful shift away from the state’s historical community roots.
As GoLocal first reported, Hasbro filed its federally required WARN letter confirming the official closure of its Rhode Island facilities. Just under 600 employees are impacted by the move, which shifts operations to Boston under the direction of CEO Chris Cocks. The publication notes that Cocks has planned the transition for years, recently making remarks about Pawtucket that the board labels classless. Because the company frames the shift as a relocation rather than outright layoffs, workers who cannot uproot their lives or endure a grueling daily commute to Boston face termination by the end of the year.
Federal Penalties and Money Laundering Allegations at Bank of America
Troubles mounted on the very same day when the U.S. Treasury Department announced a major settlement with Bank of America, a financial institution with strong ties to the Ocean State through its acquisition of Fleet Bank. According to Treasury documents, the bank admitted to willfully violating the Bank Secrecy Act by failing to maintain a compliant anti-money-laundering program, conducting necessary due diligence on foreign correspondent accounts, and filing required suspicious activity reports. The resulting $1.21 billion penalty ranks as the third-highest settlement in Treasury history.
The enforcement action drew immediate, sharp criticism from Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren.
“Bank of America failed to implement an effective anti-money laundering program for years, allowing Chinese crime syndicates and other illicit actors to move billions in suspicious transactions through our financial system. The Biden Administration failed to hold Bank of America accountable in 2024, and now, the Trump Administration is letting Bank of America off the hook with a slap-on-the-wrist fine that represents a small fraction of the $30 billion in profits the bank made last year alone,” said Warren.
Warren further argued that true accountability would involve an asset cap, strict restrictions on shareholder dividends and stock buybacks, and a criminal investigation into potential anti-money laundering violations. She contended that CEO Brian Moynihan—who also serves as Chancellor of Brown University—should answer to Congress regarding why executives allegedly ignored compliance warnings.
CVS and the Legacy of the Opioid Crisis Settlement
Adding to the corporate reckoning, the ongoing legal fallout surrounding CVS and its role in the opioid crisis reached a new milestone. The Department of Justice announced that CVS agreed to pay $315 million to resolve allegations spanning from October 17, 2013, through December 2, 2025. The government alleged that the company illegally filled prescriptions for opioids and other controlled substances in violation of the Controlled Substances Act, subsequently submitting invalid claims to Medicare and other federal healthcare programs under the False Claims Act.
Many of these violations occurred during the tenure of Helena Foulkes, the Rhode Island Democratic gubernatorial candidate who previously oversaw CVS pharmacies and served as company president. Foulkes has repeatedly declined to provide substantive responses regarding the violations.
When the government initially announced the lawsuit in December 2024, Zachary A. Cunha, then the U.S. Attorney for the District of Rhode Island, used uncompromising language.
“Opioid deaths remain a scourge on communities across Rhode Island and the nation, robbing families of loved ones and leaving a path of devastation in their wake,” said Cunha. “This lawsuit alleges that CVS failed to exercise its critical role as gatekeeper of dangerous prescription opioids and, instead, facilitated the illegal distribution of these highly addictive drugs, including by pill mill prescribers.”
