Regulators have ordered Fulton Financial Corp. to improve deficiencies in its Bank Secrecy Act and anti-money laundering compliance, the bank said in a filing Friday.

Three Fulton subsidiaries — Fulton Bank, Swineford National Bank and FNB Bank — have each entered into consent orders with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. Issued on July 14, Fulton said the orders require the bank to review, assess and take actions regarding its compliance program including: internal controls; the periodic risk assessment process; customer due diligence procedures; enhanced due diligence procedures for higher-risk customers; procedures for monitoring for, identifying, investigating and reporting suspicious activity, or known or suspected violations of law; the qualifications and sufficiency of staff responsible for carrying compliance; and training.

Lancaster-based Fulton, which has a large presence in the Philadelphia region, also said it expects the company and another subsidiary, Lafayette Ambassador Bank, will enter into a consent cease-and-desist order with their primary federal bank regulatory agency, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. It also said there could be more regulatory orders for other subsidiaries.

The $18 billion-asset Fulton said that responsibility for its compliance program switched in January from the subsidiary banks to the corporation.

The bank said it has spent signficant money and resource on compliance already and that the order could have “a material adverse effect on the corporation’s results of operations in future periods.”

In addition, the bank noted that failure to comply with the orders could result in further enforcement actions, the imposition of material restrictions on Fulton’s activities (presumably lending) or the assessment of fines or penalties.

Regulatory orders for Bank Secrecy Act and anti-money laundering compliance issues can not only consume a significant amount of money and time but can also stifle growth plans. No further proof is needed than news from M&T Bank Corp. this week, which said it is still sorting through its compliance order issued in early 2013. It has put a halt on plans to buy Hudson City Bancorp.