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AMLCorner

AMLCorner has written 52 posts for AML Corner

4th EU Anti-Money Laundering Directive: another reason to act promptly

On the 9th December 2014, Guardian published a letter wrote by several investigative journalists. All of them are urging the new European Commission President, Jean-Claude Juncker, to ensure that the legislative process for adopting the 4th EU AML Directive is going forward. The following is the content of their letter: As investigative journalists, we believe in […]

What’s new on the Corruption Perception Index 2014?

Last night Transparency International released the Corruption Perceptions Index 2014. At the first analysis of the data, there are not many surprises. However, it is worth noting that: Turkey and China’s rating on perceived corruption has fallen steeply (respectively from 50 to 45 points, and from 40 to 36 points); More than two thirds of […]

Beneficial ownership: what’s the G20′s position?

At the last G20 summit in Australia, the Anti-Corruption Working Group (ACWG)  reported to Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors that the ACWG agreed that G20 countries will lead by example by developing G20 High-Level Principles on Beneficial Ownership Transparency that will set out concrete measures G20 countries will take to prevent the misuse of and ensure […]

FCA update: how is money laundering and sanctions risk managed by small banks?

On 14th November 2014, the Financial Conduct Authority  (FCA – formerly known as Financial Conduct Authority) published a new report on how small banks manage money laundering and sanctions risk. The report follows up the previous review on Bank’s management of high money-laundering risk situations (AML review) carried out by the Fincial Services Authority (FSA) in 2011. […]

Who is your real Beneficial Owner? Comments on the new guidance published by FATF

On 24 October 2014, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) published two guidance, one of those is on the “Transparency and Beneficial Ownership” (“Guidance”). The Guidance is mainly directed to assist law enforcement and other competent authorities in deterring and preventing the misuse of corporate vehicles by money launders. In doing so, the FATF has […]

Money laundering prevention guide a global first for lawyers

On 05th November 2014, the International Bar Association (IBA) in conjunction with the American Bar Association (ABA) and the Council of Bars and Law Societies of Europe (CCBE) has published a new AML guide aiming to provide lawyers across the world with practical guidance in detecting and preventing money laundering. As stressed in the IBA’s update, a Lawyer’s Guide to Detecting and Preventing […]

De-risking: FATF clarifies what the best approach to take is

Today, FATF has issued a press release on the topic of the first day of the FATF Plenary meeting, the issue of de-risking. There are few considerations which can be drawn. Firstly, the FATF defines what is generally accepted as “de-risking” : It refers to the phenomenon of financial institutions terminating or restricting business relationships […]

Luxembourg drops bank secrecy rules

On 14th October 2014, Reuters reported that Luxembourg agreed to end its bank secrecy rules from 2017, yielding to a decade of pressure from Germany and the United States and marking a breakthrough in global efforts to reduce tax evasion. Luxembourg, whose banks hold deposits worth 10 times the nation’s annual economic output, said it would adopt an international standard […]

The Cayman Islands: national money laundering assessment launched

Today, Compass Cayman has reported that the Cayman Islands has launched a national assessment of its money laundering and terrorist financing risks with a series of workshops organized jointly by the Cayman Anti-Money Laundering Unit and the World Bank this week. A team from the World Bank visited the Cayman Islands from Oct. 13 to […]

The great British money launderette

Following our previous post on the Russia Laundromat, the Independent has published today an exclusive joint investigation with the Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project, a NGO. What has been defined as “the great British money launderette” has identified dozens of firms in a global web spreading from Birmingham to Belize. Front companies in the UK are […]