Month: July 2019

A blog from UK Finance carries a post about a risk of which I for one was unaware.  The contact centre interactive voice response (IVR) system is the front door for customers using the phone and enables them to complete self-service transactions at their convenience, but fraudsters can target the IVR to harvest information to scam customers.  As part of an organised attack, it warns, the fraudster will probe the IVR to acquire or validate data that will enable them to cash out the victim’s account or gather additional information to enable authorised push payment (APP) fraud.  The post starts by revealing the results of an analysis of calls to show the make-up of an organised fraud attack – including the detail that 10% of IVR attacks are from fraudsters that have already been blacklisted by another bank.  Fraudsters use IVR alongside other means (such as social media) to gather and validate data about their victim.

https://www.ukfinance.org.uk/news-and-insight/blogs/preventing-contact-centre-ivr-fraud

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The EU Sanctions Blog reported on 31^st July that the Commercial Court has given judgment in Ministry of Defence & Support for Armed Forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran v International Military Services Ltd.  The decision means that the Iranian MoD cannot claim the £400 million in interest owed to Iran from the sale of British military vehicles in 1971, as the relevant EU Regulation imposing sanctions precluded the ministry from enforcing the interest component of the award because no claims connected to the performance of a contract or transaction could be satisfied if made by a designated person.

https://www.europeansanctions.com/2019/07/uk-high-court-judgment-says-paying-iranian-ministry-interest-on-award-would-breach-sanctions/

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On 31^st July, a release on Mondo Visione advises that the FCA has published Final Guidance which sets out the cryptoasset activities it regulates, in response to the FCA’s consultation earlier this year.  It is said that this Guidance will help firms understand whether their cryptoasset activities fall under FCA regulation, and this will allow firms to have a better understanding of whether they need to be authorised and what they need to do to ensure they are compliant.

http://www.mondovisione.com/media-and-resources/news/uk-financial-conduct-authority-provides-clarity-on-current-cryptoassets-regulati/

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On 31^st July, Out-Law carried a briefing saying that the new owners of a company at the centre of a bribery investigation will not face enforcement action from the SFO, which was instead able to prosecute the previous owner.  The bribery scheme by ALCA Fasteners was uncovered in late 2017 after the sale of the company to new owners, who reported the matter to the SFO.  The law firm behind Out-Law says that the decision indicates that if an acquirer does the right thing on discovering a fraud within a newly purchased company, the SFO will not penalise the acquirer – the acquirer also being an innocent victim at the hands of the old management’s fraud.

https://www.pinsentmasons.com/out-law/news/sfo-prosecutes-previous-company-owner-for-bribery-following-self-report

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On 30^th July, Accountancy Daily reported that the Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes has published 9 peer review reports assessing compliance with international tax transparency standards.  Costa Rica, Croatia, Lebanon, Malaysia and the Federated States of Micronesia and Nauru received an overall rating of “Largely Compliant”; Botswana and Vanuatu were rated “Partially Compliant” and Guatemala was rated “Non-Compliant”.

https://bit.ly/2GDJ66p

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On 31^st July, the Belfast Telegraph reported that a Northern Ireland woman has been served with an unexplained wealth order demanding she explain how she was able to buy 6 properties worth around £3.2 million.  The NCA believes the woman has links to serious organised crime, including criminals involved in paramilitary activity and cigarette smuggling.  4 of the properties are in London, while 2 are in Northern Ireland.
https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/northern-ireland/northern-ireland-woman-served-with-mcmafia-wealth-order-in-3-2m-property-probe-38362037.html

https://www.nationalcrimeagency.gov.uk/news/nca-secures-unexplained-wealth-order-against-properties-owned-by-a-northern-irish-woman

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On 31^st July, OCCRP reported that Spain’s High Court has launched an investigation into the country’s second-largest bank, Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (BBVA), suspected of bribery and of hiring a company to wiretap journalists, politicians and businesspeople – targeting 9 current and former managers at BBVA and will focus on allegations of corruption and disclosure of confidential information in relation to the bank’s dealings with the company of former police chief, Jose Manuel Villarejo.  He is said to have been jailed in 2017 for using his company, Grupo Cenyt, to wiretap, blackmail, and threaten people at the request of companies and private individuals.  BBVA is a visible institution in much of the Spanish-speaking world, including Latin America and parts of the US, and a subsidiary of the bank, Bancomer, is the largest financial institution in Mexico.

https://www.occrp.org/en/daily/10367-spanish-bank-bbva-placed-under-corruption-investigation

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On 30^th July, FATF reissued an updated schedule of the consolidated ratings of countries’ AML/CFT system ratings following their mutual evaluations and any subsequent re-rating.

http://www.fatf-gafi.org/media/fatf/documents/4th-Round-Ratings.pdf

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An article from Holland & Knight on 30^th July reported that the US Department of Education has started investigations into whether US colleges and universities have complied with the Higher Education Act regarding reporting gifts from, or contracts with, foreign sources.  This is said to be part of the Trump Administration’s efforts to track potential national security issues involving foreign activities in the US, especially with respect to China and the Middle East.

https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/foreign-gifts-to-u-s-educational-93166/

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On 31^st July, the BBC reported that GVC Holdings, owner of Labrokes Coral has been fined for not protecting vulnerable customers and for failings in its AML measures.  The Gambling Commission says that over a 3-year period, Ladbrokes and Coral failed to put effective safeguards in place to “prevent consumers suffering gambling harm”.  The problems occurred between November 2014 and October 2017, after which GVC Holdings bought Ladbrokes Coral in March 2018.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-49175515

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