The
Regulations are designed to prevent businesses from being used for money
laundering or terrorist financing purposes and require regulated businesses to,
for example, apply risk sensitive policies and procedures on the verification
of customer identity, record keeping, training staff and reporting suspicious
activity to the National Crime Agency.
Hastings International UK Limited (Hastings) is an
estate agent with two premises in south London and was fined
£47,966.
Jackson Grundy Limited (Jackson Grundy) operates its
estate agency business from 10 premises and was fined £169,652. The
company's head office is in Duston, Northampton.
Cardiff-based Jeffrey Ross Ltd (JRL) had two premises in
the city during the OFT investigation period and was fined
£29,000.
The
failures in all three cases were significant and widespread and
include:
- Failures to apply adequate customer due diligence
measures when carrying out estate agency work.
- Failures to conduct ongoing monitoring of business
relationships.
- Failures to establish and maintain appropriate policies
and procedures on adequate record-keeping, internal controls or risk
assessments.
- Failures to train relevant employees in how to recognise
and deal with transactions and other activities which may be related to money
laundering and terrorist financing.
On
31 March 2014, the OFT's anti-money laundering powers and responsibilities
pass to Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs in respect of
estate agents.
Kate Pitt, OFT Deputy Director of Anti-Money Laundering,
said:
'The Money Laundering Regulations are designed to
detect, deter and disrupt financial crime. We fined these three estate agents
as they were failing to comply fully with the regulations, and so were more
vulnerable to money laundering or terrorist financing
activity.'
Hastings and Jackson were fined by the OFT on 26 March
2014 and have until 24 April 2014 to appeal. JRL was fined on 19 March 2014 and
has until 17 April 2014 to appeal.
NOTES
- Under the Money Laundering Regulations 2007, the OFT may
impose a penalty of such amount as it considers appropriate on a relevant
person that fails to comply with certain provisions of the
Regulations.
- See anti-money laundering
FAQs.
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