Episode 14: Risks of money laundering associated with UK Money Service Bureaus and UAE Exchange House Sector

The UKFIU Podcast

In this episode, panellists from the National Crime Agency (NCA) and UAE Financial Intelligence Unit (UAEFIU) discuss the nature of MSBs and exchange houses in the UK and UAE, the risks of money laundering associated with both sectors, patterns of criminality, how this type of financial service has changed and why there is still a need for them in an increasingly cashless world.

For the subtitled version of this episode go to: https://youtu.be/zSHK63hIugU

Acronyms used in this podcast:

MSB: Money service bureau or money service business

SME: Subject-matter expert

SARs: Suspicious Activity Reports

AML: Anti-money laundering

CFT: Combatting financing of terrorism, or CTF (counter-terrorist financing)

STR: Suspicious Transaction Report

HOSSP: A report published by the Financial Action Task force (FATF) on ‘the role of Hawala and other similar service providers in money laundering and terrorist financing’

IVTF: Informal value transfer system

IBAN: International bank account number

EMI: Electronic Money Institutions

Time Stamps

00:07 Introduction

00:55 MSB’s explanation

03:05 Hawala explanation

04:12 How does this differ to an exchange house within the UAE?

04:51 What steps have been taken to identify financial crime through suspicious activity reporting in the UK?

06:16 What steps have been taken to identify financial crime through suspicious activity reporting in the UAE?

09:45 What are some of the key areas of concerns regarding these areas of financial services?

11:50 What concerns does the UAE have around Hawala type services?

12:30 Patterns of criminality associated with MSBs in the UK

14:32 Patterns of criminality associated with Exchange Houses in the UAE

19:12 Why is there a need for MSBs or Exchange Houses in an increasingly cashless world? Do the benefits to customers outweigh the challenges to law enforcement or regulators?

22:38 Conclusion