Efforts to combat money launderers, entities and people suspected of financing terrorists and organized crime are to be led by a new UAE agency. Launch is part of a nationwide series of measures to tackle money laundering in the UAE. The office aims at protecting vital financial interests undermined by dirty money, illicit finance and the funding of terrorism. The UAE has taken serious and impressive strides in fighting money laundering and enacted a set of laws to make sure we exercise maximum oversight. UAE is an alluring destination for investors and companies from around the globe and both Abu Dhabi and Dubai are growing financial centers for the region. As a major financial center, it should take urgent action to cut out the criminal financial flows attracted to it. The government has already enacted strict laws and established departments to deal with money laundering and financial crimes.
Ministry also oversees professionals in non-financial sectors that are most exposed to the risks of money laundering. These include independent accountants and auditors, property brokers, companies service providers and dealers of precious metals and gemstones. The authorities have further scrutinized procedures to make the details of ultimate beneficial owners of businesses registered in the UAE more transparent, to tackle shell companies. Central Bank has also imposed recently financial sanctions on 11 banks for failing in living up to the anti-money laundering standards and mechanisms. In a world of borderless economies, the UAE’s new office is keeping abreast of developments with state-of-the-art techniques to detect and trace money disguised in blockchain transactions. Terrorists and money launderers became tech-savvy in recent years, with some resorting to digital wallets and cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin. Many schemes involve sending or receiving funds through bank-like online entities.