Month: March 2021

On 31 March, a news release from the Jersey FSC advised that its financial crime examinations identified 191 findings where businesses were not meeting statutory and regulatory requirements.  The examinations, which were carried out last year, reviewed arrangements to prevent and detect financial crime at 27 businesses.  A feedback paper details its findings and it says that it encourages all businesses to review the report so that they can assess their own compliance risks and the effectiveness of their systems and controls to prevent, detect and report financial crime.

https://www.jerseyfsc.org/news-and-events/almost-200-findings-identified-in-financial-crime-examinations/

https://www.jerseyfsc.org/industry/visits-and-examinations/financial-crime-examinations-feedback-from-2020-examinations/

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On 31 March, OFAC added 4 Italian entities to its sanctions lists

https://home.treasury.gov/policy-issues/financial-sanctions/recent-actions/20210331

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On 30 March, VinciWorks, a provider of online compliance training and risk management software, has created a country guide to bribery.  The guide includes guidance for over 70 countries.  For each country, there is a summary of key bribery offences, who it covers, if businesses are required to have procedures in place, hospitality rules, facilitation payments and legal penalties.

https://vinciworks.com/resources/anti_bribery/guide-to-anti-bribery-laws.pdf

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On 30 March, the European Studies Unit (ESU) of the University of Liège published this report – an update of its 2017 original.  It looks at International Strategic Trade Controls Regimes, or what traditionally has been known as export control regimes.  The first part outlines the overall structure and general principles of the WTO.  The second part explores free trade exceptions organised by other international legally and politically binding instruments – in other words, international treaties, regimes and systems are investigated.  The third part investigates regional rules and policies – specifically, the legally and politically binding acts of the EU are analysed. 

https://www.esu.ulg.ac.be/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/ISTCR-2021.pdf

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On 29 March, the Counter Extremism Project (CEP) published a new report – An Unholy Alliance: Links Between Extremism and Illicit Trade in East Africa.  It says that East Africa is being critically undermined by illicit trade.  Terror groups such as al-Shabaab and ISIS-linked affiliates in Somalia and Mozambique, as well as Central African militias, urban gangs, and international crime groups are increasingly targeting East Africa as a destination market for illicit trade, as well as a transport hub for the mass import and export of illegal goods.

https://www.counterextremism.com/content/unholy-alliance

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The Egmont Group of FIU has released a public summary version of its guidance produced by the Egmont Centre of FIU Excellence and Leadership (ECOFEL).  It is said that the key message that has been shared by FIU is the importance of flexibility in dealing with the current crisis in order to ensure the wellbeing of FIU staff and the security of the FIU data, whilst also ensuring that the FIU is able to continue its crucial role in the global fight against money laundering and terrorist financing.

https://egmontgroup.org/sites/default/files/Best%20Practices%20Guide%20%28Final%29%20Public%20-%202020-03-18.pdf

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On 30 March, The Independent reported that a businessman – Ildar Sharipov, the owner of an international currency business – is suing a Merseyside police for alleged misconduct in the handling of a case against him, in what has been described as one of the biggest legal actions of its kind in this country.  A court order was obtained in April 2018 without his knowledge.  Around £1 million of the frozen funds has since been returned to him, and he is now seeking a judicial review into police conduct in his case and for the rest of the funds to be returned.   Sharipov claims that a Nigeria-linked fraudster had used a foreign currency platform, Grizzio, to carry out a car and air ticket scam, and he had no knowledge of what had taken place until the police action started.   

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/police-misconduct-suing-sharipov-b1817417.html

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On 30 March, OCCRP said that a new report says that Chinese-owned fishing companies cheated the Ghanaian government out of millions of dollars a year in fishing licence revenues by using shell companies to fraudulently obtain lower-priced local licences.  It is said that Ghana also fell short in its duties to punish and deter illegal fishing, imposing fines below the minimum amount required by law, according to an NGO.   

https://www.occrp.org/en/daily/14133-report-chinese-fishing-companies-cheat-fishing-license-in-ghana

https://ejfoundation.org/news-media/ghana-losing-millions-of-dollars-in-revenue-as-chinese-fishing-trawlers-hide

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On 31 March, Mirage News carried a number of UK case studies to help academics and postgraduate researchers understand when and if their work may need a licence to comply with export control legislation.

https://www.miragenews.com/export-controls-on-academic-research-537860/

Meanwhile, the UK Department for International Trade published information and guidance.

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/export-controls-applying-to-academic-research

https://www.gov.uk/government/case-studies/export-controls-on-academic-research

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On 29 March, the Times of Malta reported that the Company Service Providers (Amendment) Act 2020 came into force on 16 March.  The Malta Financial Services Authority has also launched the updated rulebook for CSP.  It is said that changes extend to all types of legal persons and not just companies, removing previously applicable exemptions and de minimis rules, and impose farther reaching ongoing obligations and heftier penalties for non-compliance in a bid to raise standards within the sector.

https://timesofmalta.com/articles/view/reforms-to-the-company-services-provider-sector-are-now-in-force.861109

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