The new chief of the Financial Action Task Force wants stronger laws to go after dirty money. T. Raja Kumar, who became president of the global watchdog in July, lays out his priorities in an interview.
(Bloomberg) — The new chief of the Financial Action Task Force wants stronger laws to go after dirty money. T. Raja Kumar, who became president of the global watchdog in July, lays out his priorities in an interview.
“We need to go after the proceeds of crime because they fuel more serious crime. You are cutting off the lifeblood of criminal enterprise,” Kumar, who’s also a senior adviser in Singapore’s Ministry of Home Affairs, said last month. “This can then really make a huge dent in crime.”
Here are other comments he made:
- Reports suggest that less than 1% of the proceeds of crime are recovered by law enforcement, Kumar said. FATF and Interpol have launched an initiative to boost asset recovery including stronger legislation and global anti-money laundering standards.
- “Countries that are effective in recovering illicit assets have made this a national and law enforcement organizational priority.” He cited New Zealand, which has a target to seize at least NZ$500 million ($280 million) of illicit assets within three years.
- Another priority: stopping criminals from hiding illegal activities and money behind anonymous shell companies or other complex structures. FATF recently strengthened its standards on beneficial ownership.
- He also touched on cryptocurrencies. “There’s clear evidence that organized crime gangs, for example, are laundering funds with crypto. Terrorists, for their part, are turning to crypto to raise and move funds.” North Korea is using crypto and hacking crypto exchanges to finance their weapons of mass destruction program, he said.
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