Money laundering is a serious offence, something the Australian Commonwealth Bank is finding out the hard way after being fined millions on money laundering charges.
It can be difficult for small-to-medium businesses to perform their due diligence to ensure they're complying with this legislation when their resources are stretched.
However, New Zealand businesses will have to start taking the appropriate measures as changes to the Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Countering Financing of Terrorism (CFT) Act 2009 come into effect.
From July 1, legislative requirements are being extended and the obligations under the act will now be imposed to the legal, real estate, sports betting, and high-value goods industries (jewellery, precious metals, precious stones, watches, motor vehicles, boats, art or antiques where they take cash payments of $15,000 or more).
It's estimated that the new legislation will more than quadruple the number of businesses affected in New Zealand.
In order to prepare New Zealand businesses, Bartercard has created an ebook that covers the most important changes coming into effect in two months.
The AML and CFT Act Guide introduces and discusses some of the obligations imposed on reporting entities, how to better understand AML compliance for a business and all aspects of the Anti-Money Laundering Act.
The major changes include
- The need for a designated employee (Compliance Officer) to administer and maintain a company's AML/CFT programme
- Customer Due Dilligence will need to be performed on new customers and existing business relationships in the future
- Understanding how to identify suspicious customer activity.
Check your compliance posture and make sure your business is ready.
Download the e-book now.
