While countries around the world are getting together to tackle the growing menace of money laundering, small businesses handicapped by paucity of necessary resources or knowledge on compliance issues can benefit from a company established recently in Auckland.
Called, ‘Anti-Money Laundering Solutions Limited (AML Solutions)’, the new entity provides web-based advice on a number of issues which would help small businesses to comply with the ‘Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Act 2009,’ (AML and CFT) which will come into full force on June 30, 2013.
AML Solutions has the combined expertise and experience of Directors Richard Manthel and Mark Todd, both of who have served 15 years each respectively as Managing Director of Robert Walters and Partner at Bell Gully.
Mr Manthel said that his company will also undertake statutory AML audits.
He said that the New Zealand Government is determined to combat money laundering and terrorist financing by tightening regulations.
“This will place substantial new obligations on businesses of all sizes, ranging from large banks to small financial advisers and money lenders,” he said.
According to Mr Todd, large businesses including commercial banks spend tens of millions of dollars and employ teams of consultants to ensure that they are compliant with anti-money laundering laws.
“But a completely different approach had to be found to meet the needs of smaller businesses. We had to make a very complex area simple and provide a low cost path to compliance that is likely to be satisfactory to the Regulators,” he said.
Visual knowledge
AML Solutions has produced a series of videos, which provide advice on anti-money laundering laws and the action that companies should take after June 30, he added.
Mr Manthel said that businesses can submit to his company, a completed a confidential online questionnaire that would be relevant to various business sectors.
The questionnaire would enable AML Solutions to provide a fixed quote for producing high quality compliance documents using their template base documents, he said.
“We know that businesses need to minimise compliance costs and our entire approach is based on using technology and innovative business systems to generate efficiencies for our clients. We are certain that this will deliver a superior option to the traditional consulting model and the ‘Do-it-yourself’ alternative,” Mr Manthel said.
Global menace
Law enforcement officials from several countries told a conference hosted by the Serious Fraud Office New Zealand on February 11, 2013 that money laundering had become a global problem, especially in the wake of terrorist attacks in the US and UK in 2001 and that increased global cooperation would help stemming the flow of illegal money for illegal purposes.
“Any exercise involved in pursuing perpetrators of crime would necessarily involve a fight against money launderers. There is an increasing concern over such money transactions, as they are always linked to terrorists and terrorism, arms and drug dealers,” Stephen Head, Commander of the City of London Police said.
SFO New Zealand, SFO UK, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (USA), the European Anti-Fraud Office (European Union based in Belgium), Economic Crime Directorate (London City Police), Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (Singapore) Anti-Corruption Commission (Malaysian) and agencies representing a number of Asian countries were among those who attended the conference held at Viaduct Event Centre.
Agencies Network
The agencies launched the ‘Economic Crime Agencies Network’ (ECAN), sending a strong message to fraudsters, operators of Ponzi schemes and other white-collar rogues: Crime does not pay and we have got together to get you somewhere soon.
SFO NZ Acting Chief Executive Simon McArley said that New Zealand was also well aware of its international obligations in promoting Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Combating the Financing of Terrorism (CFT) measures.
“All of us are committed to tracing money launderers and their sources. Organisations such as ECAN will help to combine our resources and strengths to fight against this international crime,” he said.
Further details about AML Solutions can be obtained from Richard Manthel on 021-557000 or at www.amlsolutions.co.nz
