The Economy is carrying out inspection campaigns to monitor the compliance of the non-financial professions with the legislations and decisions to combat money laundering
The Ministry of Economy - in cooperation with the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates, the Securities and Commodities Authority, the Federal Customs Authority, and the Dubai Multi Commodities Center - has begun implementing extensive inspection campaigns on the business sector and specific non-financial professions, with the aim of monitoring the sector's compliance with the legislation, regulations and decisions against money laundering in force In the country, the start came from companies and establishments operating in the gold sector.
The Ministry of Economy and the supervisory partners stated that the campaign will continue during the coming weeks to include all activities within the business sector and specific non-financial professions, which includes agents, real estate brokers, dealers of precious metals and gemstones, account auditors and company service providers.
The campaign is implemented by a specialized technical team from the regulatory authorities, and includes field and office inspections, surprise visits, directing technical questions, examination and intense scrutiny of documents, documents, governance policies, the activities of the company under inspection inside and outside the country over the past years, and investigating the movement of import and export, operations, projects and others.
The campaigns focus mainly on monitoring internal regulations and assessing the extent of their compliance with the requirements of Federal Law No. 20 of 2018 regarding countering money laundering crimes, combating the financing of terrorism and financing illegal organizations, its implementing regulations and related decisions, foremost of which is the evaluation of understanding the risks of money laundering in the company under investigation. And whether it has achieved the legal requirements such as appointing a compliance officer and taking due diligence measures in its dealings with its customers and the extent to which the procedures for financial transfers are in line with the standards of the banking system in the country and following up on whether it has dealt with suspicious parties.
Safia Al Safi, Director of the Anti-Money Laundering Department at the Ministry of Economy, confirmed that the UAE, thanks to the directives of its wise leadership, today has strong and appropriate legislation and deterrent violations in relation to combating money laundering and combating terrorist financing, and that the Ministry of Economy is working seriously with its partners to enforce these legislations to ensure the safety of And the transparency of commercial transactions in the business sector and specific non-financial professions, and not allowing the business environment in the country to be a haven for money laundering and terrorist financing crimes, and confronting illegal and unsound practices and suspicious activities, in a way that guarantees the safety of the national economy and achieving the objectives of the National Strategy to Combat Money Laundering and Combat the Financing of Terrorism. And strengthening the country's position as a safe, stable and reliable destination for investment and business.
Al-Safi explained that the inspection campaigns came within the framework of the Ministry of Economy and regulatory authorities applying a risk-based approach in its procedures to implement anti-money laundering and combating terrorist financing legislation, noting that this process is part of an integrated plan by the Ministry of Economy and its partners to inspect business sector activities and specific non-financial professions. As a high risk activity, the sector's facilities will be monitored for compliance with legal requirements.
Al-Safi called on the concerned companies to intensify their efforts to enhance awareness of the risks of money laundering and keep abreast of the government's efforts in this file, noting that the most important steps required at the present time are to expedite registration in the financial information unit (goAML) system and the committee for goods and materials subject to import and export control (automatic reporting system). For the lists of penalties), and taking measures related to the two systems, before the date of March 31, 2021, to avoid penalties that may reach suspension of the license and closure of the facility, or fines that may reach 5 million dirhams.
The Ministry of Economy and the partner supervisory authorities clarified the most prominent violations and wrong practices that would place the target companies under penalty of penalties and fines as a result of non-compliance with legal requirements regarding anti-money laundering and combating terrorist financing, including: Failure to register in anti-money laundering regulations;
Failure to appoint a compliance officer;
Failure to take due diligence measures towards clients;
Failure or weak risk assessment at the internal level of the company in question and at the level of its clients and business relationships;
Lack of policies and procedures to combat money laundering and combating terrorist financing, most notably the weakness of the process of submitting suspicious reports and the failure to take the necessary measures in accordance with the executive regulations of the law;
Dealing with persons, destinations and areas classified under the "high risk" category by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), not keeping documents and records;
Weak internal audit systems and corporate governance policies;
Poor training of officials and employees on systems and procedures to combat money laundering.
Follow our latest local and sports news, and the latest political and economic developments via Google news