The Bank of Ghana has introduced new Anti-Money Laundering guidelines for forex bureaus in the country.

The guidelines cover, among others, the key areas of the AML/CFT&P programme, such as Anti-Money Laundering Reporting Officer designation and responsibilities, Co-operation with the Supervisory Authority and Customer Due Diligence. Others are Risk assessment, Monitoring and reporting of suspicious transactions and Regulatory reporting requirements.

The Central Bank said Foreign Exchange Bureaus are exposed to varying ML/TF&PF risks through unlawful activities with serious financial and reputational damages if they fail to manage these risks adequately.

As such a diligent implementation of the provisions of these guidelines will not only minimise the risks faced by Foreign Exchange Bureaus of being used to launder the proceeds of crime but also provide protection against economic and organised crime, reputational and financial risks.

 In this regard, Foreign Exchange Bureaus are required to adopt a risk-based approach in the identification and management of ML/TF&PF risks.

“Foreign Exchange Bureaux shall ensure that AML/CFT&P policies governing their operations do not only prescribe money laundering and predicate offences but also prescribe sanctions for non-compliance with the relevant AML/CFT&P requirements. It is, therefore, in the best interest of the Foreign Exchange Bureaus to entrench a culture of compliance which would be facilitated by these Guidelines”, it added.

These Guidelines is issued pursuant to section 52 (e) (i) of Act 1044 and intended to assist Foreign Exchange Bureaux to understand and comply with AML/CFT&P laws and regulatory requirements; develop and implement effective risk-based AML/CFT&P compliance programmes that enable adequate identification, monitoring and reporting of suspicious activities/transactions; among others.

Scope of Unlawful Activities

The Foreign Exchange Bureaus it said shall identify and report to the Bank of Ghana and the Financial Intelligence Center, the proceeds of crime derived from unlawful activities including: participation in an organised criminal group and racketeering; terrorism, including terrorist financing; and others.