Money from Crime – A real threat to your business
It is estimated that $1 trillion of criminal assets is currently being laundered worldwide, with £42 million of assets arrested and frozen here in the Island only last year pending the outcome of criminal proceedings, including £3 million from a drugs laundering exercise through a local butchery business.
Classic “placement, layering and integrating” techniques for money laundering are increasingly moving outside the financial services world into ordinary business. International standards which jurisdictions need to adopt to have a comprehensive range of anti-money laundering defences in place increasingly recognise this trend.
Accordingly, the States of Jersey is to be asked to introduce legislation to ensure that non-financial services businesses in the Island adopt ‘best practice’ to deter and prevent money laundering and the financing of terrorism. The Jersey Financial Services Commission, which is responsible for the development and implementation of anti-money laundering policies for the finance industry, has been tasked with the oversight of estate agents and high value goods dealers through it’s newly established Anti-Money Laundering Unit
The Island’s Government and various interested parties are moving towards a conclusion for oversight arrangements for lawyers and accountants.
What this will mean is that anti-money laundering procedures are soon to be applied across all Island businesses who accept cash payments over 15,000 Euros (approximately £10,000) for goods supplied, either in a single payment or a linked transaction. The key criteria is goods, not services
Those businesses will be required to have certain administrative procedures and safeguards in place under the legislation, to ensure that the monies involved are not from the ‘proceeds of crime’.
Estate Agents are also included within the new AML standards; not on the basis of cash receipt but because of their important role in the purchase and sale of property, frequently an asset highly prized by money launderers.
The Commission recognises that that there is a balance to be struck here between causing needless alarm, and not making businesses aware of their obligations.
To help local non-finance businesses understand the implications and any potential impact upon their business, the Commission is developing a specifically targeted Information Programme.
A number of short sessions will be held over the course of January 2008 and will be designed to assist companies to design and implement their procedures, with the least impact on their business. The dates and venues of these sessions will be publicised and circulated to interested parties shortly. Anyone who would like more details on the sessions is invited to call T: 629800, email events(at)concept-comms.com or call the Anti-Money Laundering Unit at the Commission on T: 822034 and ask for Nick Troy or Brigitte Ibotson.