General
Risk management during COVID-19
OPINION: Last week, the President of FATF has issued a statement encouraging the governments of FATF-member countries to utilise the principles of the risk-based approach in addressing challenges presented by COVID-19, as well as, remaining vigilant to new and emerging threats resulting from an increase in fraud and exploitation scams including trafficking in counterfeit medicines,…
Read MoreProperty continues to be the AML weak link in Australia
Australia is still lagging behind global standards in the developed world when it comes to combating the flow of illicit money entering the property market. AUSTRAC has estimated that there were AUD$1billion worth of suspicious transactions in the Australian property market from China in the 2016 fiscal year. The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has…
Read MorePayPal Australia ordered by AUSTRAC to have AML audit
AUSTRAC has ordered an external auditor be appointed by PayPal Australia to examine ongoing concerns regarding PayPal Australia’s compliance with the AML/CTF Act. In the next 120 days, the appointed external auditor must report on PayPal Australia’s compliance with According to a PayPal Australia spokesperson, PayPal has self-disclosed “an issue” relating to International Fund Transfer…
Read MoreIs Australia’s methamphetamine problem falling down the cracks (slight pun intended!)?
If you thought it was just Antarctica that has a major ice problem you’d be wrong, Australia is facing an ice problem of epidemic proportions. After reading recent articles over the last two months on a couple of substantial drug busts thwarted by the Australian Federal Police, it got me thinking about the sheer volume…
Read MoreConcerns over use of spreadsheets to manage AML Compliance
In a recent industry presentation to risk and compliance managers in Australia by regulatory software provider Arctic Intelligence, an audience poll revealed 54% of respondents listed reliance on spreadsheets for risk assessment which may no longer be fit-for-purpose for conducting anti-money laundering (AML) risk assessments as one of their top three concerns. The poll also…
Read MoreConsultant case study: Aub Chapman consulting services
We invited AML/CTF consultant, Aub Chapman from Aub Chapman Consulting Services, to share his thoughts on why he uses AML Accelerate on client engagements. When I’m doing independent audits, I find that clients have deficiencies or misunderstandings in two fundamental areas. The first is, do they really understand the risks that their industry or their…
Read MoreIs Excel really fit for purpose to run risk and compliance assessments?
Author: Anthony Quinn, CEO and Founder, Arctic Intelligence I am often asked by prospective banking and consulting clients to help them justify why they should adopt RegTech and not continue using spreadsheets for managing risk and compliance engagements. So it got me thinking and here are my top 15 reasons why RegTech beats Excel hands…
Read MoreConsultant case study: Initialism – AML Compliance solutions
Neil Jeans, Principal at Initialism and co-founder of AML Accelerate, shares how he uses AML Accelerate to grow his AML/CTF consultancy. When we designed AML Accelerate, we designed it with the consulting market in mind. Delivering clients the product and service that they need – the AML program, the risk assessment, due diligence standard –…
Read MoreConsultant case study: Clement advisory group
We invited AML/CTF consultant, Garry Clement from Clement Advisory Group, to share his thoughts on why he uses AML Accelerate on client engagements. Having working in the financial crime and anti-money laundering (AML) arena for over four decades, firstly in law enforcement and most recently as a consultant, it has become abundantly clear that establishing…
Read MoreWhat NZ accountants need to know about implementing an anti-money laundering programme
If you are a public practice accountant operating in New Zealand, you are required to comply with the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) obligations outlined in Phase 2 of the AML/CFT Act 2009, which commenced in October 2018. Under the new requirements, you must carry out an AML risk assessment and…
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