Int’l alliance bands together to fight money laundering

The formation of an international alliance against money laundering was announced this week in Hong Kong, involving government representatives from China, the Philippines, Thailand and Cambodia. The group has been spearheaded by a Hong Kong-based NGO, which is receiving support from regulators, former central bankers and government officials.

According to Reuters, the alliance will share information to combat the evolving technology that makes it more difficult to track and regulate illicit money flows across Asia.

Among the supporters is Anselmo Teng, former head of the Macau Monetary Authority. Teng, who retired from the Authority last year, told Reuters that the Macau Special Administrative Region had been successful in curbing illicit money outflows through its new automatic teller machine (ATM) regulations.

The regulations entered into force last year and involve, among other measures, facial recognition technology to be rolled out to Macau ATMs. The measures are aimed at curbing money laundering and illicit capital outflows from mainland China.

“ATM cash withdrawals have dropped [in Macau] as a result of the KYC measures because it has effectively stopped this cross-border illegal cash withdrawal activity,” Teng told Reuters.

However, as the crackdown intensifies in Macau, Hong Kong has seen a sharp rise in the number of ATM withdrawals, which local media dubbed “suspicious”. Authorities in the neighboring SAR did not dispute the reported surge, but told the South China Morning Post that there were “many reasons” for fluctuating withdrawal levels.

Clarie Lo, co-chair of the Alliance and former Deputy Secretary of the Hong Kong government’s Financial Services and Treasury Bureau, said that other countries and territories in the Asia-Pacific region could learn from the measures that have been introduced in Macau.

“Things like the experience from Macau will be very useful and beneficial for other jurisdictions around Asia which does not have this technology or know how to do so,” she told Reuters.