The easy and cost effective way to stay compliant with Anti Money Laundering Regulations
REDTRAY and specialist forensic accountants, Bridges & Partners, today launch the Anti Money Laundering (AML) Compliance Centre. This unique online resource provides a highly cost effective and time efficient way for organisations to comply with the Money Laundering Regulations 2003 and will be extended by the Third EU Directive that is due to enter into force by December 2007.
The Second & Third EU Directives extend the law to a wider cross section of UK organisations that were previously unaffected including accountants, lawyers, estate agents, casinos, dealers in high value goods and the insurance sector. The legislation carries criminal sanctions ranging from 2 years for failure to have systems and procedures (including the initial and continued training of relevant staff) in place to prevent Money Laundering, to 14 years for involvement.
The AML Compliance Centre includes the systems, the procedures and the training to ensure companies are able to comply with the law and manage their exposure to risk. The online training regime not only enables a business to train their staff, it also has provision for the Money Laundering Reporting Officer (MLRO) to administer the initial and continued training programmes and maintain an audit trail to prove that staff have been trained. Competency levels can be checked through user definable exams. A comprehensive compliance manual is provided, (which is a legal requirement) alongside other useful tools for the MLRO.
One of the distinguishing strengths of the AML Compliance Centre is the Editorial Board which is drawn from leading legal, industry and training experts. The editors are responsible for providing a continuous updating service in this fast moving area of law, regulation and best practice.
Martyn Bridges, Partner at Bridges & Partners and Editor of the AML Compliance Centre says, “When the law first came into effect, we found that many smaller organisations just couldn’t afford the initial and ongoing compliance costs to meet the requirements of the Money Laundering Regulations 2003 (MLR). Over the past 18 months, we’ve pooled the expertise of our AML legal team along with the online education skills of REDTRAY. The result is an easy to use and cost effective way for organisations (both large and small) to be lawfully compliant. Most importantly, due to the flexible web-based format, delegates can progress through the courses with minimal disruption to their working day.”
The MLR requires that organisations must establish internal procedures to identify Money Laundering activities and have communication systems in place to deal with any issues. It also requires that all relevant employees have their attention drawn to the relevant provisions of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002, the Terrorism Act 2000 and the MLR. The MLR requires relevant employees to be given training in how to recognise and deal with transactions that may be related to Money Laundering.
Charles Purle QC, Head of Chambers, New Square Chambers and Consultant Legal Editor on the AML Compliance Centre continues, “Compliance training is not a luxury but a mandatory legal requirement. The consequences of treating this requirement lightly are serious, ranging from likely loss of insurance cover to criminal responsibility.”
Rowan Bosworth-Davies, a leading international expert in fraud prevention and anti-money laundering and Deputy Editor on the AML Compliance Centre adds, “To be fully compliant with anti-money laundering regulations, competent and effective training is now recognised as being the issue of primary importance. The risk based approach mandates that training must now take priority if businesses are to benefit from the advantages which the risk based approach provide. This product delivers a holistic approach to both the training imperative and the practical requirements of best practice regulatory provision.”
Gerald Harrington, Consultant Editor Property says, “For all the notice the industry has had, or should we say “done not a lot about”… a sleep easy solution for the MRLO’s of the property and construction world has arrived. The multitude of industry sectors from suppliers through to D+B contractors, building and quantity surveyors, architects and property management departments who are all on occasion front line client interfaces with the industry, managing, certifying and in some cases accepting the passage of client funds; for their MRLO’s, here lies a practical self managed solution to all their compliance needs.”
The AML Compliance Centre is a unique hosted service built on REDTRAY’s ALTO platform – an integrated suite of web-based tools that deliver blended learning solutions. Customers can use ALTO for everything from managing course bookings and training schedules, measuring/testing levels of knowledge and then following up with the creation, deployment and management of e-Learning content to staff. ALTO also acts as a central knowledge repository for the organisation. The solution represents a cutting edge solution in this difficult, risky and potentially expensive area of compliance.
To take a tour of the AML Compliance Centre or for supporting illustrations, please contact Fiona Cousins on the details below.