Money Laundering Monitoring Made Easier

The U.K.'s Financial Services Authority says it is working on streamlining its anti-money laundering requirements for financial firms. The FSA plans to remove "existing detailed rules" on money laundering controls "in their entirety," and replace them with "high-level requirements" for firms to develop their own risked-base controls. "The changes in [the FSA] Handbook do not mean we are going soft money laundering," says Philip Robinson, FSA's Financial Crime Sector leader, "they are part of delivering a more proportionate and effective regime to counter money laundering. He added that the changes will allow firms to better "target their resources where they will make the most difference in fighting crime." The new rules will go into effect in early March, followed by a transitional period ending in August.