Drugs, weapons and human trafficking: the real impact of money laundering – Telegraph.co.uk

Criminals rely on money laundering to profit from many crimes, including weapons and drugs. This destroys thousands of lives around the world and in the UK. But to make good on their bad deeds, criminals must use reputable firms to turn dirty money into something they can spend.

Money laundering often works by splitting large funds into smaller amounts and disseminating them through multiple payments that are less likely to raise alarm by either professional services firms such as accountancies, or the state.

Its essential that whenever a professional has doubts about a client engaging their firm, he or she reports the matter to their money laundering reporting officer

While almost every solicitor or accountant is fully versed in their firms due diligence measures cunning criminals and complacency can lead to cases slipping through the net.

Money laundering is not a victimless crime, and seemingly harmless transactions can have ripple effects which end up destroying professional reputations, as well as lives.

Its essential that whenever a professional has doubts about a client engaging their firm, he or she reports the matter to their money laundering reporting officer, who will determine whether or not to file a suspicious activity report with the National Crime Agency. This will assist law enforcement to gather valuable intelligence and, where necessary, recover assets and bring criminals to justice.

The UKs professional services companies are being targeted by money launderers, who use legitimate firms to bring the proceeds of serious and organised crime into the economy, investing it further into criminality and undermining the integrity of UK financial institutions and markets.

The Home Office is working with professional services firms through its Flag It Up! campaign to help honest enterprises avoid becoming enablers of crime.

Visit tgr.ph/homeoffice for more information about the dangers of money laundering and the steps being taken to combat it.

You can find further information on how to submit a suspicious activity report on theNCA website, and regulatory guidance is signposted through the Accountancy Affinity Groupssupervisory pagesand the Law Society's anti-money laundering page.

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Drugs, weapons and human trafficking: the real impact of money laundering - Telegraph.co.uk