The UAE and Belgium look to the UK to boost AML/CFT controls

AML/CTF international cooperation is growing with Belgium, the United Kingdom (UK), and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) taking a collaborative approach to improving Belgium & UAE AML, CFT, & KYC controls to combat financial crime, enhance money-laundering controls, and improve information sharing.

On June 21, the UK and the UAE announced that they had completed a two-week-long conference focused on improving UAE’s money-laundering controls.

UAE’s Executive Office of Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing (the AML Executive Office), established earlier this year, is working with Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HRMC) and the Serious and Organised Crime Network (SOCnet) to address AML/CFT challenges and best practices.

UAE’s AML Executive Office was established to oversee the implementation of its National AML/CTF Strategy. The latter aims to tackle the concerns raised by FATF last year, as it placed the country under a year-long observation period. The AML Executive Office carries out its mandate in conjunction with the UAE’s existing National Committee for Combating Money Laundering and the Financing of Terrorism and Illegal Organisations (NAMLCFTC) and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

UAE isn’t the only country holding the UK up as an example.

According to the Brussel Times, Febelfin, the Belgian nonprofit financial sector federation, has launched a consultation platform on 18 June 2021 to fight money laundering and financial crime.

Febelfin hopes that this new platform will foster greater collaboration between the financial industry and government authorities. As such, the nonprofit organization aims to follow UK’s footsteps in facilitating information sharing between financial institutions, law enforcement, and regulators. According to Febelfin, this collaboration has enabled UK law enforcement to seize over £56 million and identify 5,000 suspicious accounts.

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