Knowledge Sharing : Lawyers and AMLA in Malaysia.
Lawyers are classified as a Reporting Institutions under Designated Non Financial Businesses and Professions (DNFBPs)
So?
They are required by Law to undertake preventive measures to prevent their Institutions from being used as a conduit for Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing Activities including:
1) carrying Out risk assessment
2) Conducting Customer Due Diligence
3) Submitting Suspicious Transaction Report and Cash Threshold Report (Financial Institution and Casino)
4) Maintaining and retaining records of transaction and ;
5) implementing Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) compliance programme based on ML/TF risk exposure, it's size, nature and complexity
Bar Council Malaysia has issued Circular No. 119/2018 dated 8 May 2018 about good practices and common lapses identified by Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) during previous on site examination.
The good practices were:😀👍
(1) maintenance and centralisation of customer database at the law firm level;
(2) adequate management information system (“MIS”) using both manual records and a
simple system to capture customer due diligence (“CDD”) and transaction records,
commensurate with the firm’s size and complexity; and
(3) retention of basic CDD and transaction records for at least six years.
The lapses identified were:🆘👮🏧
(1) lapses in Enhanced Customer Due Diligence (“EDD”) on higher-risk customers due tothe absence of / inadequate customer risk profiling;
(2) absence of transaction monitoring on clients;
(3) gaps in establishing internal criteria (“red flags”) to detect suspicious transactions and
reporting mechanisms for suspicious transactions;
(4) lapses in maintaining a database of names and details of sanctioned individuals and
entities;
(5) lapses in conducting checks on the names of new and existing clients against the list
of sanctioned entities;
(6) lapses in money laundering / terrorism financing (“ML/TF”) risk assessment in
relation to the firm’s customers, products, and services, transactions or delivery
channels and geographical presence;
(7) absence of / inadequate risk profiling of clients;
(8) absence of written AML/CFT policies and procedures on key areas of AML/CFT
requirements;
(9) absence of senior management oversight on AML/CFT matter
10) Gaps in conducting AML/CFat awareness and training programme for employees and
11) Gaps in appointing a Compliance Officer to undertake COMPLIANCE Function for AML/CFT matters.
Sir Nazri
#AML
#COMPLIANCE
#lawyers
#education #amlcft #dakwahislam #knowledge #SirNazri #dakwah #awareness #knowledgesharing #FollowTheMoney #dakwahku
