January 07, 2011
Many businesses and particularly financial and credit businesses, lawyers, accountants and estate agents will be familiar with the requirements of the Money Laundering Regulations 2003, designed to ensure that their businesses are not used as a vehicle for money laundering.
In addition to the industry sectors above, certain businesses involved in high value transactions must also comply with the checks, assessments, reporting, registration and management requirements listed in the Regulations. High value transactions are defined as cash payments for goods worth 15,000 euros or more.
Some offences covered by the Act carry criminal liability for aiding and abetting or failing to report them so it is imperative that legal advice is sought if a business owner is unsure whether their business is covered by the Regulations and/or what their obligations are.
Not even the Pope is immune from anti-money laundering measures. He has recently signed legal documents guaranteeing that the Vatican’s finances will be regulated in accordance with international money laundering laws. These laws also required the Vatican to set up an independent watchdog to oversee its financial operations, following allegations by the EU that it was breaching money-laundering rules. Earlier last year, an Italian court froze 23 million euros in a Vatican bank because neither the sender nor recipient had been disclosed, in what the Vatican explained was a ‘banking error.’
It is hoped that these measures will reduce any risk of the Vatican being used by criminals as a potential money laundering loophole.
