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Despite the measures put in place, the United Kingdom remains a major platform for money laundering in the world, according to a Transparency International report released Thursday (October 24th).
" The UK is a platform for corruption money from around the world, " says Transparency International in its report released on Thursday (October 24th). The country has certainly put in place measures to fight against money laundering, but they remain insufficient in view of the scale of the phenomenon. At the heart of the problem, the NGO points to a legislative apparatus that is not sufficiently dissuasive and institutions with insufficient means.
One hundred billion pounds of dirty money would flow into the country's economy every year, according to estimates by the National Crime Agency (NCA) taken over by Transparency International. It would only be the surface of the iceberg, as the quantification remains extremely complicated.
NEW: At Your Service analyzes how the UK played a role in:
⚖️ 400+ major corruption boxes amounting to
325 £ 325 billion worth of funds diverted by rigged procurement, bribery, encumbrance and the unlawful acquisition of state assets
🌍 116 countrieshttps: //t.co/d4WOkMCJwE
325 billion pounds would have passed through the UK
Based on reports, expert testimony and case studies, the NGO highlights part of the money laundering networks in the UK. Three hundred and twenty-five billion pounds would have passed through the United Kingdom in the last thirty years, says the NGO. It has investigated more than 400 cases of corruption and money laundering, involving a total of 166 countries. The money came from rigged markets, bribes and other embezzlement.
Nearly 230 British companies - banks and financial institutions, law firms and accounting firms - participated in this network, consciously or not. The money was then invested in companies or spent in opulent residences, jewelry, yachts and race cars.
Luxurious material expenses, but not that. Children of super rich have also been able to study in renowned universities thanks to the suspicious money. Beneficiaries include the son of the former Moldovan prime minister who was studying at City University in London, paying 1,000 pounds a day and driving in Bentley.
NGO advocates lifting bank secrecy
To combat the phenomenon effectively, three key words: transparency, ethical commitments and monitoring. The NGO concludes its report with ten recommendations. It advocates the strengthening of the legal liability of companies and individuals, but also the lifting of bank secrecy or property that still exists in the UK law.
While with the Brexit, the United Kingdom is actively renegotiating its place in world trade, the fight against money laundering remains essential. The NGO recalls that dirty money is often synonymous with bad reputation, impoverishment and insecurity. Fighting would allow the UK to maintain investor confidence, otherwise the country risks going it alone.