32-1-403. Penalty for transacting business without certificate. - Montana Statutes

     32-1-403. Penalty for transacting business without certificate. (1) A person, firm, company, partnership, or corporation, domestic or foreign, advertising that the person or entity is receiving or accepting money or savings and issuing notes or certificates of deposit for them or advertising that the person or entity is transacting the business of a bank, savings bank, or trust company or making use of an office sign at the place where the business is transacted, having on it an artificial or corporate name or other words indicating that the place or office is the place or office of a bank, savings bank, or trust company or that deposits are received there or payments made on check or that interest is paid on deposits or that certificates of deposit, either with or without interest, are being issued or that any other form of banking business is transacted, and a person, firm, company, partnership, or corporation, domestic or foreign, using or circulating any letterheads, billheads, blank notes, blank receipts, certificates, or circulars or any written or printed or partly written and partly printed paper whatever, having on it an artificial or corporate name or advertising that the business is the business of a bank, savings bank, or trust company, must have the proper capital stock paid in and set aside for the purpose of transacting that business and must have received from the department, as provided for in this chapter, a certificate to do a banking business.
     (2) A person, firm, company, partnership, or corporation, domestic or foreign, violating any provision of this section shall forfeit to the state $100 a day for every day or part of a day during which the violation continues.
     (3) Upon action brought by the department, the court may issue an injunction restraining a person, firm, company, partnership, or corporation from further violating any provision of this section and may enter a further order or decree as equity and justice require.
     (4) A person, firm, company, partnership, or corporation doing any of the things or transacting any of the business defined in this section shall transact that business according to the provisions of the Bank Act, and the department may examine the accounts, books, papers, cash, and credits of that person, firm, company, partnership, or corporation, domestic or foreign, in order to ascertain whether that person, firm, company, partnership, or corporation has violated or is violating any provisions of this section.

     History: En. Sec. 30, Ch. 89, L. 1927; re-en. Sec. 6014.34, R.C.M. 1935; amd. Sec. 15, Ch. 431, L. 1975; R.C.M. 1947, 5-509; amd. Sec. 1009, Ch. 56, L. 2009.