The post FATF’s Global Fight Against Terrorist Financing and Proliferation Financing first appeared on Complyport - Your Trusted Partner in Governance, Risk, Compliance & Technology .
]]>The Comprehensive Update on Terrorist Financing Risks 2025, stressed the continued adaptability of terrorist actors in exploiting the global financial system. Developed in collaboration with the United Nations Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate and contributions from over 80 jurisdictions, the report outlines a wide range of terrorist financing typologies shaped by regional and contextual factors.
Terrorist groups continue to exploit both traditional and modern financial channels including cash, bank accounts, virtual assets and crowdfunding platforms, to finance their operations. Key findings include the growing misuse of virtual assets and cryptocurrencies, which offer anonymity and cross-border functionality, making them attractive for illicit financing. Importantly, terrorist financing does not always involve proceeds of crime, distinguishing it from money laundering. It is critical to note that terrorist financing does not always involve the proceeds of crime, which distinguishes it from money laundering.
FATF has also identified the growing exploitation of crowdfunding platforms, particularly through social media, to solicit global donations as well as the use of non-profit organisations and informal value transfer systems such as hawala, often due to weaker regulatory oversight.
FATF President Elisa de Anda Madrazo spoke to the urgency of addressing these vulnerabilities, stating, “This continued abuse of the financial system poses a serious threat to global security and undermines international peace.” The report calls for enhanced intelligence sharing, stronger public-private partnerships, and the implementation of risk-based Counter-Terrorist Financing (CTF) measures.
For firms in the UK, including those regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017 (MLRs), provide the framework for implementing controls to counter terrorist financing. These include enhanced customer due diligence measures in situations where there is a higher risk of terrorist financing, including CTF considerations into the firm-wide risk assessment and appointing a senior personnel with appropriate authority and expertise to oversee these controls.
The Guidance on Countering Proliferation Financing addresses the financing of weapons of mass destruction proliferation, a critical and growing threat. UK regulators, including the FCA and HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC), have amplified their scrutiny of firms’ controls in this area throughout the year.
The report reveals that only 16% of assessed countries demonstrated high or substantial effectiveness in implementing targeted financial sanctions under United Nations Security Council Resolutions, particularly in relation to FATF Recommendation 7, which is to ensure targeted financial sanctions related to proliferation financing.
Illicit actors are employing increasingly sophisticated methods to evade sanctions, including cyberattacks on virtual asset platforms, generating billions in illicit revenue and the use of front companies, shell companies and complex ownership structures to obscure financial trails.
To counter these threats, FATF emphasises the importance of public-private collaboration and intelligence sharing, issuing detailed alerts to support Suspicious Activity Reporting (SARs), and conducting national risk assessments specific to proliferation financing, an approach already being adopted by UK authorities.
Firms must ensure compliance with the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2018 and relevant FCA requirements under SYSC 6.3, as well as adhere to sanctions-related obligations administered by HM Treasury’s Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI).
Both FATF reports highlight systematic global deficiencies. Many jurisdictions struggle to fully understanding terrorist financing trends, which undermines the effectiveness of their countermeasures. The terrorist financing report draws on over 840 submissions from the private sector, academia, and think tanks, offering a nuanced view of evolving risks.
Similarly, the proliferation financing guidance identifies enforcement challenges, including inadequate regulatory frameworks, limited cross-border cooperation, and insufficient technical capacity.
To address these gaps, FATF recommends:
FATF’s updates for 2025 provide a clear and urgent roadmap for strengthening global responses to terrorist and proliferation financing. By highlighting the adaptability of illicit actors and the systemic vulnerabilities that persist, the reports call for coordinated, risk-based action. Jurisdictions must leverage FATF’s framework, enhance intelligence sharing, and promote public-private partnerships to play their part in preserving the integrity of the international financial system.
While FATF sets the global standard, we are already seeing practical implications within the UK regulatory environment. Both the FCA and HMRC have intensified their supervisory focus, with terrorist and proliferation financing emerging as common areas of weakness across many regulated firms.
Complyport’s team of regulatory experts can assist you in:
Book a meeting with a Complyport Subject Matter Expert to discuss how these developments may impact your firm and receive tailored guidance on enhancing your financial crime risk framework.
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]]>The post UAE Taking Further Steps first appeared on Complyport - Your Trusted Partner in Governance, Risk, Compliance & Technology .
]]>In its latest measures, the UAE has introduced new reporting requirements for certain real estate transactions. As part of the drive to improve its international standing on the AML/CTF stage, this latest requirement sees all real estate agents, brokers and law firms being required to file reports to the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) on the purchase and sale transactions of freehold properties that involve any one (or a combination of) three methods of payment, whether for a portion or the entire property value.
These are:
The new rules apply to both individuals and corporate entities that are party to the relevant real estate transactions, and also require real estate agents, brokers and law firms to obtain and record the identification documents of the parties to the applicable transaction.
It will of course, not go unnoticed that this latest move by the UAE happens to come about just days after the FATF issued its final guidance for the real estate markets. So on one hand, the UAE could be accused of playing to the orchestra, but on the other, compliance with the new FATF guidance would have been required at some point or another, so early steps towards compliance is no bad thing.
Given the existing flurry of AML/CTF compliance activity since being placed on the “grey” list, the UAE should be applauded for its efforts in bringing about a change to their AML/CTF regime so far, and in such a speedy manner. One does wonder though, if it is possible to achieve all of this so quickly, why wasn’t it done following receipt of the FATF warning in August 2020 which could have avoided the placement on the “grey” list altogether.
Our experienced Financial Crime and Forensics team led by Martin Schofield—one of the world’s leading specialists in the field—brings a wealth of experience to every project we are engaged in. Our highly experienced financial crime professionals and forensic experts, in subjects such as anti-money laundering, counter terrorist financing, anti-bribery and corruption and fraud and regularly help our clients navigate the complexities of the financial crime and money laundering environment. Services offered by Complyport include:
If this article has raised any questions, or you think your firm may require assistance, please contact either Martin Schofield via martin.schofield@complyport.co.uk or Jan Hagen via jan.hagen@complyport.co.uk to book in a free consultation.
Complyport is the City’s market leading consulting firm supporting the UK financial services industry for over 20 years. We specialise in providing Governance, Risk and Compliance services to support the regulated financial services industry to raise standards and thrive.
Complyport advises and assists firms to become authorised and to comply with the rules and requirements of regulators on an ongoing basis. Our vision is to be there for our clients every step of the way, helping them change, grow, and excel through expertise, insight, and innovation, and in so doing to become our clients’ most valued supplier and trusted advisor.
We have successfully assisted over 1000 firms to become authorised with the FCA and EU and are providing regulatory support to over 600 regulated firms on an ongoing basis globally. With presence in the UK and EU, as well as via our Associates Network, Complyport can assist firms across multiple jurisdictions.
Complyport’s multidisciplinary consultants possess deep expertise in their field, having acted in FCA skilled person reviews, as expert witnesses in legal cases and as expert investigators for firms or their legal advisers.
Day to day, we conduct audits and reviews of a firm’s products, processes, policies, and procedures to identify scope for business, to determine the impact of regulatory developments and to verify compliance with local regulations. Our clients tell us we live our values; we are driven, agile and collaborative.
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]]>The post UAE Making Reparative Steps first appeared on Complyport - Your Trusted Partner in Governance, Risk, Compliance & Technology .
]]>Regrettably, this was not enough and in March 2022, the UAE was indeed placed on the FATF ‘grey’ list.
Since being placed on the list, the UAE government has taken affirmative steps to better align itself with the global standards on anti-money laundering and counter terrorist financing as set out by the FATF’s 40 Recommendations and significantly strength its anti-financial crime framework.
These are the first steps being taken by the CBUAE to address their FATF identified deficiencies, but this is an encouraging start, and identifies a clear and immediate course of being taken. However, as with everything, it shall of course be the effectiveness of these changes by which the effort to bring them in will be judged.
Our experienced Financial Crime and Forensics team led by Martin Schofield—one of the world’s leading specialists in the field—brings a wealth of experience to every project we are engaged in. Our highly experienced financial crime professionals and forensic experts, in subjects such as anti-money laundering, counter terrorist financing, anti-bribery and corruption and fraud and regularly help our clients navigate the complexities of the financial crime and money laundering environment. Services offered by Complyport include:
If this article has raised any questions, or you think your firm may require assistance, please contact either Martin Schofield via martin.schofield@complyport.co.uk or Jan Hagen via jan.hagen@complyport.co.uk to book in a free consultation.
Complyport is the City’s market leading consulting firm supporting the UK financial services industry for over 20 years. We specialise in providing Governance, Risk and Compliance services to support the regulated financial services industry to raise standards and thrive.
Complyport advises and assists firms to become authorised and to comply with the rules and requirements of regulators on an ongoing basis. Our vision is to be there for our clients every step of the way, helping them change, grow, and excel through expertise, insight, and innovation, and in so doing to become our clients’ most valued supplier and trusted advisor.
We have successfully assisted over 1000 firms to become authorised with the FCA and EU and are providing regulatory support to over 600 regulated firms on an ongoing basis globally. With presence in the UK and EU, as well as via our Associates Network, Complyport can assist firms across multiple jurisdictions.
Complyport’s multidisciplinary consultants possess deep expertise in their field, having acted in FCA skilled person reviews, as expert witnesses in legal cases and as expert investigators for firms or their legal advisers.
Day to day, we conduct audits and reviews of a firm’s products, processes, policies, and procedures to identify scope for business, to determine the impact of regulatory developments and to verify compliance with local regulations. Our clients tell us we live our values; we are driven, agile and collaborative.
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]]>The post FATF Issues its Revised AML/CTF Guidance to the Real Estate Sector first appeared on Complyport - Your Trusted Partner in Governance, Risk, Compliance & Technology .
]]>Further, data gathered by FATF during its 4th round of MER’s suggest the revamp is required, to adequately address money laundering (ML) and terrorist financing (TF) risks. Notably, a high portion of countries assessed during the MERs identified the real estate sector as presenting a high risk for ML/TF, with 37% of countries surveyed found the sector risk to be high, and with only 9% which consider it low or medium-low.
Equally concerning is that, in addition to the above, countries’ real estate sectors have been found to have a poor level of understanding of the relevant ML/TF risks. FATF reports that as of 2021, 78% of 4th round MERs suggest that there is a poor or very poor rating in this area, despite 47% of these countries acknowledging that the sector was heavily important to their economy.
The combined assessment of the FATF findings strongly suggest the need to revisit and refine practices and work towards improving overall compliance with FATF Standards. Correct implementation of the guidance should enable countries and practitioners to ably respond to the inherently unique ML/TF risks and threats they have identified.
With the UK’s Economic Crime Act recently introducing the register of overseas entities holding UK property, there is certainly a domestic and international spotlight shining on the real estate market as a whole.
A link to the full guidance is here: https://www.fatf-gafi.org/media/fatf/documents/recommendations/RBA-Real-Estate-Sector.pdf
For all those working within the real estate sector, the pressure is mounting, and whether you would benefit from a remote financial crime support service or think that now would be the perfect time to consider reviewing and updating your risk framework, policies, procedures, and employee training. Why not get in touch with Complyport today to see how we can help you?
Our experienced Financial Crime and Forensics team led by Martin Schofield—one of the world’s leading specialists in the field—brings a wealth of experience to every project we are engaged in. Our highly experienced financial crime professionals and forensic experts, in subjects such as anti-money laundering, counter terrorist financing, anti-bribery and corruption and fraud and regularly help our clients navigate the complexities of the financial crime and money laundering environment. Services offered by Complyport include:
If this article has raised any questions, or you think your firm may require assistance, please contact either Martin Schofield via martin.schofield@complyport.co.uk or Jan Hagen via jan.hagen@complyport.co.uk to book in a free consultation.
Complyport is the City’s market leading consulting firm supporting the UK financial services industry for over 20 years. We specialise in providing Governance, Risk and Compliance services to support the regulated financial services industry to raise standards and thrive.
Complyport advises and assists firms to become authorised and to comply with the rules and requirements of regulators on an ongoing basis. Our vision is to be there for our clients every step of the way, helping them change, grow, and excel through expertise, insight, and innovation, and in so doing to become our clients’ most valued supplier and trusted advisor.
We have successfully assisted over 1000 firms to become authorised with the FCA and EU and are providing regulatory support to over 600 regulated firms on an ongoing basis globally. With presence in the UK and EU, as well as via our Associates Network, Complyport can assist firms across multiple jurisdictions.
Complyport’s multidisciplinary consultants possess deep expertise in their field, having acted in FCA skilled person reviews, as expert witnesses in legal cases and as expert investigators for firms or their legal advisers.
Day to day, we conduct audits and reviews of a firm’s products, processes, policies, and procedures to identify scope for business, to determine the impact of regulatory developments and to verify compliance with local regulations. Our clients tell us we live our values; we are driven, agile and collaborative.
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]]>The post Following the Money: Recent FATF Compliance Findings first appeared on Complyport - Your Trusted Partner in Governance, Risk, Compliance & Technology .
]]>To monitor and measure this, the FATF published a Report (“the Report”) on the State of Effectiveness and Compliance with their AML/CTF & CPF Standards and Recommendations in April 2022. This report offers a comprehensive overview of the state of global efforts to tackle money laundering, terrorist, and proliferation financing. The report essentially offers a snapshot of the present-day technical compliance and effectiveness of regimes put in place by those FATF member countries (or FATF Style Regional Bodies (FSRB) member countries) which have been evaluated to date.
The FATF’s mission is to set appropriate international standards (otherwise known as Recommendations) on Anti-Money Laundering, Combating the Financing of Terrorism, and Countering Proliferation Financing (AML/CFT/ CPF) and to keep updating and reviewing the appropriateness of these standards. They achieve the latter by continuously monitoring and assessing new and emerging risks and updating their standards accordingly. Additionally, the FATF focuses on measuring its member countries’ implementation and effectiveness of these standards through a peer-review process known as Mutual Evaluations Reports (MERs).
The State of Effectiveness and Compliance Report focuses on information collected by:
At the date of finalization of the Report, 120 out of 205 jurisdictions had been evaluated. It is worth noting that all of the data collected and collated in this Report are from publicly available reports and publications.
The report contains several positive takeaways. Almost all member countries completed an initial assessment of their money laundering and terrorist financing risks, and some had done so multiple times. The FATF and FSRB evaluations have demonstrated that countries have begun taking actions or creating policies to mitigate their risks with appropriate policy and operational responses.
Additionally, members have initially agreed on tougher global rules for beneficial ownership of legal persons (Recommendation 24). The new rules are a major step forward to preventing illicit enrichment by ensuring that all countries will need to have a beneficial ownership registry or an equivalent system in place. For more detail on this, read our full FATF Plenary Meeting Summary.
Finally, criminal justice frameworks to tackle money laundering and terrorist financing are now in place. Most countries also have financial intelligence units, designated authorities for financial investigations, and specialists tasked with asset recovery (i.e., identifying and confiscating the proceeds of crime.) Countries are also exchanging more information and cooperating with international counterparts.
However, many countries still face substantial challenges in taking effective action equal to the risks they face. These challenges are made even harder to overcome by the fact that many countries conduct risk assessments and adopt risk-based approaches too late, or often at a slow pace. Whilst steps have been taken to apply regulations and FATF framework, governments need time to implement policies and co-ordinate with public and private bodies to respond effectively to the risks.
What’s more, investigations and prosecutions of money laundering and terrorist financing remain rare in most countries, particularly for complex cases or despite some strong international co-operation among countries on cases involving a cross-border element. Furthermore, only a tiny fraction of all proceeds of crime are recovered. As such, convictions for money laundering are often not in line with the major risks identified within each country.
Governments are not the only responsible bodies; private sector entities such as banks, money or value transfer services, lenders, and virtual asset service providers have a shared responsibility to help identify and prevent risks from money laundering and terrorist financing. This is nothing new, but it is emphasised in the FATF report, which suggests a lack of effort or action from the relevant bodies.
Relative to private sector entities, FATF findings show that larger multinational financial institutions generally have a clear understanding of the risks they face. As a result, they have put in place effective risk mitigation measures. In contrast, it was observed that small financial institutions, as well as the nonfinancial sector (including actors such as real estate agents, lawyers, and accountants) generally have a poorer understanding of risks. This often results in these entities struggling to mitigate them.
This Report fed into the FATF’s Strategic Review, which aims to make the next cycle of MERs timelier, risk-based, and effective. The next round of MERs will include:
The report also recommends the following actions for member countries:
The report also observes that, in general, private sector entities need a change of culture in applying a true risk-based approach to conduct customer due diligence, keep records, and file suspicious activity reports.
The Report acknowledges that countries have made considerable progress in implementing the technical requirements of the FATF Standards, but greater effort is needed to ensure that effective implementation is taking place. Tangible results will only come following fundamental or major improvements to their money laundering and terrorist financing systems.
The FATF recognises that many countries continue to take a “tick box” approach to adopting laws and regulations but crucially, and wrongly, do not focus on results. It concludes that it is imperative for countries to set goals and aims to successfully achieve the 11 immediate outcomes of the FATF’s effectiveness-based peer reviews.
Following a meeting in Washington amongst FATF ministers on 21 April 2022, there was a strong consensus to commit to strengthening the FATF global network, enhancing beneficial ownership transparency, and increasing capabilities to effectively recover criminal assets. The members collectively emphasised the need to improve the FATF’s capacity to respond to money laundering and terrorist financing threats to countries and pledged to remedy significant compliance deficiencies where needed.
There is no “silver bullet” to resolving issues relating to money laundering, terrorist financing or proliferation financing and reaching immediate, successful outcomes. The FATF Report reveals a number of areas of progress but also highlights the major shortcomings and challenges that persist. All countries need to make substantial improvements to effectively implement the FATF standards and continue to build upon and sharpen the global AML/CFT/CPF systems and infrastructure.
Our experienced Financial Crime and Forensics team led by Martin Schofield—one of the world’s leading specialists in the field—brings a wealth of experience to every project we are engaged in. Our highly experienced financial crime professionals and forensic experts, in subjects such as anti-money laundering, counter terrorist financing, anti-bribery and corruption and fraud and regularly help our clients navigate the complexities of the financial crime and money laundering environment. Services offered by Complyport include:
If this article has raised any questions, or you think your firm may require assistance, please contact either Martin Schofield via martin.schofield@complyport.co.uk or Jan Hagen via jan.hagen@complyport.co.uk to book in a free consultation.
Complyport is the City’s market leading consulting firm supporting the UK financial services industry for over 20 years. We specialise in providing Governance, Risk and Compliance services to support the regulated financial services industry to raise standards and thrive.
Complyport advises and assists firms to become authorised and to comply with the rules and requirements of regulators on an ongoing basis. Our vision is to be there for our clients every step of the way, helping them change, grow, and excel through expertise, insight, and innovation, and in so doing to become our clients’ most valued supplier and trusted advisor.
We have successfully assisted over 1000 firms to become authorised with the FCA and EU and are providing regulatory support to over 600 regulated firms on an ongoing basis globally. With presence in the UK and EU, as well as via our Associates Network, Complyport can assist firms across multiple jurisdictions.
Complyport’s multidisciplinary consultants possess deep expertise in their field, having acted in FCA skilled person reviews, as expert witnesses in legal cases and as expert investigators for firms or their legal advisers.
Day to day, we conduct audits and reviews of a firm’s products, processes, policies, and procedures to identify scope for business, to determine the impact of regulatory developments and to verify compliance with local regulations. Our clients tell us we live our values; we are driven, agile and collaborative.
The post Following the Money: Recent FATF Compliance Findings first appeared on Complyport - Your Trusted Partner in Governance, Risk, Compliance & Technology .
]]>The post FATF Plenary Meeting Summary first appeared on Complyport - Your Trusted Partner in Governance, Risk, Compliance & Technology .
]]>Although France has an advanced and robust Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Counter Terrorist Financing (CTF) framework, the FATF have identified further work required in certain areas particularly with respect to legal persons and the real estate sector. A report on these findings will be published in May 2022.
Following improvements and progress in their previously identified AML/CFT deficiencies, Zimbabwe are no longer under increased monitoring by the FATF. However, it will still continue to work with FATF’s regional partner, the Eastern and Southern Africa Anti-Money Laundering Group (ESAAMLG) to continue strengthening its AML/CTF programme.
The United Arab Emirates is the latest jurisdiction to be added to the list of countries under increased monitoring and review.
Countries should use this reshuffle as a reminder to continue to review and, where necessary, strengthen their AML and CTF regimes to swiftly resolve any identified deficiencies in their frameworks.
The Strategic Review, a work in progress since 2019, has now officially been completed. The aim of the review is to improve the efficiency of the FATF’s framework to make the next cycle of mutual evaluations more suitable, effective, and structured. There will be a few changes to the FATF’s processes, including a greater focus on risk in the fifth round of mutual evaluations. Member countries are therefore encouraged to prepare and prioritise their efforts in areas where risks are highest in their respective countries as they will be under close scrutiny.
The FATF have agreed on a new set of tougher beneficial ownership rules in a bid to tackle money laundering. Countries are now required to ensure firms’ beneficial ownership data is held by a competent authority which can be easily accessed by them. The full Public Statement can be accessed here.
Furthermore, the FATF has also agreed to revise Recommendation 24 and its Interpretative Note so that competent authorities in all countries have adequate and current data on the natural owners of companies. There will be a course of public consultations to follow.
The FATF concluded research on the money laundering and terrorist financing risks associated with migrant smuggling. The report highlights that multiple countries do not consider this a high-risk crime for money laundering despite the recent expansion of the criminal business. The FATF aims to publish the report on the findings on the 22nd of March 2022. This will further spotlight the need for countries to recognise the associated money laundering and terrorist financing risks they become exposed to from migrant smuggling and the need to monitor the money linked to this criminal activity.
The FATF have identified the real estate sector as a popular investment choice for criminals. This is due to the ease of exploitation stemming from a general poor understanding of risks pertaining to the sector. As such, the FATF has developed risk-based implementation draft guidance on AML and CTF measures targeted towards the real estate sector. The FATF have published a report which can be accessed here and are welcoming further comments and input from fellow real estate industry participants.
The full list of outcomes from the 2022 Plenary Meeting is accessible here.
Our experienced Financial Crime and Forensics team led by Martin Schofield—one of the world’s leading specialists in the field—brings a wealth of experience to every project we are engaged in. Our highly experienced financial crime professionals and forensic experts, in subjects such as anti-money laundering, counter terrorist financing, anti-bribery and corruption and fraud and regularly help our clients navigate the complexities of the financial crime and money laundering environment. Services offered by Complyport include:
If this article has raised any questions, or you think your firm may require assistance, please contact either Martin Schofield via martin.schofield@complyport.co.uk or Jan Hagen via jan.hagen@complyport.co.uk to book in a free consultation.
Complyport is the City’s market leading consulting firm supporting the UK financial services industry for over 20 years. We specialise in providing Governance, Risk and Compliance services to support the regulated financial services industry to raise standards and thrive.
Complyport advises and assists firms to become authorised and to comply with the rules and requirements of regulators on an ongoing basis. Our vision is to be there for our clients every step of the way, helping them change, grow, and excel through expertise, insight, and innovation, and in so doing to become our clients’ most valued supplier and trusted advisor.
We have successfully assisted over 1000 firms to become authorised with the FCA and EU and are providing regulatory support to over 600 regulated firms on an ongoing basis globally. With presence in the UK and EU, as well as via our Associates Network, Complyport can assist firms across multiple jurisdictions.
Complyport’s multidisciplinary consultants possess deep expertise in their field, having acted in FCA skilled person reviews, as expert witnesses in legal cases and as expert investigators for firms or their legal advisers.
Day to day, we conduct audits and reviews of a firm’s products, processes, policies, and procedures to identify scope for business, to determine the impact of regulatory developments and to verify compliance with local regulations. Our clients tell us we live our values; we are driven, agile and collaborative.
The post FATF Plenary Meeting Summary first appeared on Complyport - Your Trusted Partner in Governance, Risk, Compliance & Technology .
]]>The post Information Sharing in the Private Sector first appeared on Complyport - Your Trusted Partner in Governance, Risk, Compliance & Technology .
]]>| Of relevance to: | All firms, particularly those within groups of companies |
The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) have issued additional guidance on Private Sector Information Sharing which aims to improve effective information sharing, one of the cornerstones of the FATF Recommendations.
Information sharing is crucial for combatting money laundering, terrorist financing and financing of proliferation, particularly as multinational money laundering schemes don’t respect national boundaries.
It’s important that information concerning financial activity with possible links to crime and terrorism is shared in a timely and effective manner between and with both the public and the private sectors.
Firms should therefore not be unduly prevented from sharing information, but a number of legal constraints and operational challenges may prevent effective exchange of information between different firms belonging to the same group. For example, data protection and privacy laws such as the forthcoming General Data Protection Regulation give individuals the right to privacy and to protect their personal data.
The UK’s Joint Money Laundering Intelligence Taskforce was established in February 2015 and is now a permanent part of the UK’s response to money laundering and terrorist financing, bringing together the government, the British Bankers Association, law enforcement and more than 40 major UK and international banks, providing an environment for the financial sector and government to exchange and analyse intelligence.
FATF is an inter-governmental body established in 1989 with the objectives to set standards and promote effective implementation of legal, regulatory and operational measures for combating money laundering, terrorist financing and other related threats to the integrity of the international financial system.
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]]>The post 4MLD: High-risk Countries first appeared on Complyport - Your Trusted Partner in Governance, Risk, Compliance & Technology .
]]>Around one week after HM Treasury published its Consultation Paper on the Fourth Money Laundering Directive (“4MLD”) – see previous article “4MLD: HM Treasury Consultation” – a supplementing Directive (2016/1675) appeared in the Official Journal.
Article 18 of 4MLD imposes an Enhanced Customer Due Diligence requirement in certain circumstances such as dealing with e.g. Politically Exposed Persons (“PEPs”) and high-risk third countries. Although the former is defined in the Directive, the latter falls to the Commission to identify high-risk third countries.
The identified high-risk countries appear in the Annex to the short four-page Delegated Regulation 2016/1675.
Of the list of 11 countries in the Annex, 10 of them are a mixture of those that have provided a commitment to address identified deficiencies and have either developed an action plan with FATF or are seeking technical assistance in the implementation of the FATF Action Plan. The one exception is, as might be guessed, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, which is seen as an “ongoing and substantial money-laundering and terrorist-financing” risk.
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]]>The post Money Laundering: Transparency and Beneficial Ownership first appeared on Complyport - Your Trusted Partner in Governance, Risk, Compliance & Technology .
]]>The beneficial owner is the person(s) who ultimately owns or controls a customer. In terms of individuals this is, normally, straightforward with the customer being the beneficial owner. However, as we all know, it becomes more complex when faced with e.g. corporate entities, trusts etc. To this end the Joint Money Laundering Steering Group already produces useful guidance to firms to assist in the application of CDD, including identification of the beneficial owner(s).
The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has recently published its own guidance on ‘Transparency and Beneficial Ownership’ which, amongst other topics, includes the misuse of legal persons and arrangements and, of course, beneficial ownership.
The guidance is really aimed at national authorities and policy makers but those having responsibility for AML oversight will no doubt wish to add this to their archive of reference material.
Whilst on the subject of beneficial ownership, a reminder that the current version of the Money Laundering Directive (fourth) – which is still at the European negotiation stage – includes a requirement (Chapter III) for Member States to ensure that corporate and ‘other legal entities’ hold information on their beneficial ownership. Such information must be made available to any entity applying CDD in accordance with general AML requirements. In addition the information must be held in a manner which allows access by competent authorities and Financial Intelligence Units (in the case of the UK this would be the National Crime Agency) without alerting the entity concerned. Similar requirements will apply to trustees in terms of identity of the settlor and beneficiaries.
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]]>