MJ Boyd Consulting’s Post

Dirty Money & the UK: A Major Problem Nearly 40% of the world's "dirty money" (funds often stolen from developing nations) flows through the UK's City of London and its overseas territories. What's the impact? • This fuels corruption and crime globally. • It also damages the UK's reputation. What's being done? • The UK government is pushing for the creation of public registers that reveal the true owners of companies in these territories. • This would make it harder to hide illicit funds. The Challenge • Some overseas territories are resisting these efforts, citing legal concerns. Questions for Discussion • How important is it for the UK to tackle dirty money flowing through its territories? • What are the best ways to balance transparency with privacy concerns? • Should the UK take stronger action against those who resist public registers? • Should the UK stop blaming other countries for relaxed AML regulations when they are at the heart of it? Let's discuss! #DirtyMoney #UK #FinancialCrime #Transparency #Corruption Read the full article here: https://lnkd.in/e45Cq9mV

🔍 Nearly 40% of Global Dirty Money Laundered in London and UK Crown Dependencies 🔍 Having worked closely with compliance data providers, it's widely recognized that jurisdictions like the British Virgin Islands and the Cayman Islands do not provide public access to data on companies and individuals registered there. This lack of transparency poses significant risks and costs for external companies looking to engage with entities in these regions. It's promising to hear that the Cayman Islands government is planning to offer ways for external businesses to gather information. However, such measures are long overdue and should have been implemented years ago to mitigate the risks involved. 🚨 Compliance Professionals: How do you handle this challenge? Do you automatically veto working with companies based in these high-risk jurisdictions, or do you proceed despite the risks? Link to Article: https://lnkd.in/eqAqBmnv #Compliance #AntiMoneyLaundering #AML #RiskManagement #CorporateTransparency #CaymanIslands #BritishVirginIslands #DueDiligence #FinancialCrime #CorporateGovernance #BusinessEthics #RegulatoryCompliance #Transparency #Governance #ComplianceRisk

The Cayman Islands has released an updated edition of its Beneficial Ownership Transparency Act, pledging to fortify its beneficial ownership framework by the close of 2024, aligning with its revised commitment to the UK. 🤝🌐 #uk #caymanislands #finance #financialtransparency #beneficialownership

Some strong words from Dame Margaret Hodge, co-chair of the all-party parliamentary group (APPG) on anti-corruption, responsible tax & fair business banking. “Prioritising the battle against dirty money is non-negotiable. Economic crime is costing our economy £350bn each year. Some of the impacts of dirty money highlighted in the Economic Crime Manifesto published are the following: 🛡 Dirty money is a national security threat. 💷 Dirty money causes massive financial damage. 👎 Dirty money is damaging the UK’s reputation. 📈 Dirty money may be pushing up prices for British citizens. 👮♀ Dirty money undermines the rule of law and democratic institutions.

The Mikhail Fridman case against the UK's Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) rumbles on.... This is one of those cases that goes to show how much time, effort and let's be honest money goes into the government fighting challenges raised by sanctioned individuals. The impacts are not just on this case but they have a knock on effect preventing other more worthy cases being heared. We know that backlogs in relation to court cases are not short! The whole issue is around what constitutes 'basic needs' for Fridman for payments he needs to make for the upkeep of a London mansion housing an art collection. There are a couple of lovely quotes from OFSI that put a smile on my face. 1) The use of public transport rathe than a chauffeur driven car - Mr Fridman, who regularly appears in the Sunday Times Rich List and is believed to be worth £8.2 billion, needs a staff driver for “security reasons”, but this has been refused by Ofis on the basis he is “able to travel by public transport”. 2) What constitutes basic needs - OFSI added that Mr Fridman has “a strained and unrealistic interpretation” over what counts as “basic needs” under the sanctions regime. Just putting this into some form of context OFSI, said in written arguments that it had previously permitted £1,974.43 monthly payments for CCTV and £24,083 monthly payments in relation to seven security staff. That will feel like quite a large amount to most people. The other case that Mikhail Fridman is also still progressing relates to the National Crime Agency and the raid on his house in December '22. A hearing is expected to take place on that on November 14 so yet again more Court time and cost to come. #sanctions #russia #nca #ofsi #basicneeds #costs #legal #courtcase https://lnkd.in/e5fbM9qp

Switzerland’s finance minister, Karin Keller-Sutter, revealed reforms to increase transparency and close legal loopholes in an effort to eliminate the country's reputation as a haven for illegal gains. These reforms will require trusts and companies to declare their “beneficial owners.” The existing regime has been a victim of disguised asset ownership using Swiss institutions and expertise. In addition, Swiss lawyers, accountants, and other service providers will be required to conduct thorough due diligence on their clients. These reforms are still a long way from becoming law. #switzerland #transparency #illegal #lawyer #moneylaundering https://lnkd.in/duT4C4sS

The Cayman Islands is introducing a modernised beneficial ownership regime to combat financial crime and enhance transparency. In this article, Kendra Foster and Nathaniel Luker explore the key changes under the Act and its implications for businesses in the Cayman Islands. https://lnkd.in/eG6gxnr7 #BeneficialOwnership #Cayman

🇬🇧 London’s Calling for Urgent Transparency in UK's Role in Combating Global Illicit Funds 🚨 🇬🇧 This comes as no surprise to me that UK Deputy Foreign Secretary Andrew Mitchell has highlighted a concerning statistic: approximately 40% of the world’s illicit funds flow through London, as well as through other Crown dependencies and overseas territories. 🇬🇧 This emphasizes not only the scale of the challenge but also the pivotal role that Britain must play in the global fight against financial crimes. 🇬🇧 Mitchell has underscored the urgent need for enhanced regulatory frameworks within these jurisdictions, particularly stressing the importance of establishing public registers of beneficial ownership. This measure aims to ensure transparency and facilitate the tracing of illicit funds more effectively. 🇪🇺 While the British Virgin Islands and the Cayman Islands have been slow to adopt public registers, citing rulings by the European Court of Justice and human rights concerns, progress is on the horizon. Notably, the Cayman Islands government has committed to introducing an enhanced framework by late 2024 that will allow access to its registers for those with a "legitimate interest." 🏦 This development is a crucial step forward in our ongoing efforts to uphold integrity within the global financial system. As professionals in law, finance, and governance, we must continue to advocate for robust regulatory practices that prevent the misuse of our financial systems. 🤝 Let's support initiatives that promote transparency and hold territories accountable, ensuring they align with UK laws and international standards. #financialcrime #regulatorycompliance #aml #uk #globalfinance #transparency #ubo #kyb #kyc #cryto

The facts re accountability and inherent benefits and risks of either a business entity or individuals operating within those structures, appears to be lost on vested interests in Ireland, who are attempting to stymie the current legal proposals and processes. The Nov 2010 intervention by the IMF still has unfinished business both from policy / legal processes and accountability. The group’s objecting to the enhanced group and individual oversight proposed should reflect on what actions which lead to the catastrophic events of 2008 collapse. If individuals or bodies have acted in “good faith” then they should have no fear from any legal or regulatory sanction. Financial misconduct sanctions face growing pushback from lawyers and directors https://lnkd.in/dBHSZycP #governance #banking #risk

🇬🇧 Nearly 40% of global #dirtymoney is laundered through the City of #London and UK crown dependencies, according to the UK's Deputy Foreign Secretary, Andrew Mitchell. He has urged regions such as the Cayman Islands and the British Virgin Islands to comply with UK laws requiring public registers of #beneficialshareownership to enhance #transparency. Since the legislation passed in the House of Commons in 2016, there has been resistance from overseas territories in implementing these public registers. Mitchell emphasized the importance of addressing #moneylaundering, noting that a significant portion of #illicitfunds flows through London and overseas territories. Mitchell highlighted the UK’s commitment to ensuring that dirty money cannot flow in and out of these regions, stating that crown dependencies and overseas territories must accept UK values. During the UK’s chairmanship of the G8 in 2016, the focus was placed on combating dirty money and promoting open registers of #beneficialownership. Despite initial momentum, efforts to combat corruption in overseas territories waned after the resignation of Prime Minister David Cameron in 2016. However, in 2018, a law was passed requiring the implementation of beneficial ownership registers by 2020. The #BritishVirginIslands and the #CaymanIslands have yet to introduce public registers and are currently citing European Court of Justice (ECJ) rulings to restrict access. The BVI’s financial services minister previously indicated concerns about human rights infringements due to an ECJ ruling. The Cayman Islands government has stated that they are working towards providing access to those meeting the 'legitimate interest test' to #combatmoneylaundering and #terroristfinancing. They anticipate that this enhanced framework will be introduced no later than late 2024.