UAE ministers and government officials have urged executives from Designated Non-financial Businesses and Professions to raise awareness about how to combat money laundering and the financing of terrorism. DNFBPs include professions outside the financial services sector that have heightened anti-money laundering/combating the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) exposure. The discussions focused on onshore and offshore DNFBPs, highlighting the UAE’s AML/CFT framework and practical actions to improve public-private sector collaboration in this area, state news agency Wam said on Monday. “An effective system to combat money laundering and terrorist financing begins with an active and engaged partnership between the public and private sectors. Financial institutions have a core role to play, but so do DNFBPs,” Ahmed Al Sayegh, Minister of State, said in a statement to Wam. “This involves identifying, assessing and taking preventative action to mitigate the risks of being involved in facilitating the transfer of illicit proceeds for money laundering or terrorist financing purposes.” The UAE has strict measures to combat money laundering. The country set up an agency this year to identify money launderers and those suspected of financing terrorists and organised crime. The UAE Central Bank also regularly issues guidelines on how companies can assess money-laundering risks. Led by UAE government authorities, more than six hundred DNFBP constituents joined sessions to improve their understanding of key risks in this sector, regulatory and enforcement developments and the importance of enhanced engagement between the public and private sectors to prevent financial crime. “These awareness-raising sessions come at a critical time in strengthening the UAE’s approach to financial crime and build on the recent dedicated events held with financial institutions,” Abdalla Al Shamsi, assistant under-secretary for monitoring and follow up at the Ministry of Economy, said.
