The UAE’s Central Bank has issued new guidance on anti-money laundering and terrorist financing for its licensed financial institutions who provide services to cash-intensive businesses.

It came into force on 28 September and requires Licensed Financial Institutions to demonstrate compliance with its requirements within one month of the 28 September. It is aimed at helping these entities understand and effectively implement their statutory obligations in this area.

Entities providing services to cash intensive businesses must take a risk-based approach in their anti-money laundering programmes by assessing all customers to determine their degree of risk. Licensed Financial Institutions also have to perform appropriate customer due diligence which consists of customer and beneficial owners identification, understanding the customer’s business and monitor the business relationship on an ongoing basis.

Licensed Financial Institutions should also obtain appropriate information regarding the source of cash deposited in a customer’s account as well as mandate the use of Emirates ID for cash deposits in ATMs.

In addition, they should maintain transaction monitoring systems equipped to identify patterns of activity which appear unusual and potentially suspicious and report any behaviour they reasonably suspect may be linked to money laundering, terrorist financing or other criminal offence by submitting suspicious activity/transaction reports directly to the UAE’s Financial Intelligence Unit via the goAML portal. Also reported in Alroeya on 3 October 2021. For full story, click here.

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