Singapore has gaps to fill in money-laundering fight, FATF says

Singapore can do more to address the money-laundering risks posed by the country’s status as a global financial center, the Financial Action Task Force said.
While acknowledging that the Southeast Asian nation has a “reasonable understanding” of its money-laundering risks and has taken steps to mitigate them, “moderate gaps” remain, the Paris-based organization said in a report published yesterday. The report detailed various recommendations on how Singapore could beef up its measures to combat money laundering and terrorism financing.
“The nexus between transnational threats, the inherent risks faced by Singapore as one of the world’s largest financial centers, and vulnerabilities within the system” are not sufficiently reflected in Singapore’s risk assessment program, the FATF said. Its evaluation was based on measures in place to combat money laundering and financing of terrorism during a visit by FATF examiners on Nov. 17-Dec. 3.
In response, Singapore’s government and the central bank pledged “further steps” to strengthen its regime to fight illicit flows.
Before the report was published, the Monetary Authority of Singapore had stepped up action to address the reputational damage caused by anti-money laundering lapses at banks in the Southeast Asian nation linked to the beleaguered state investment fund 1Malaysia Development Bhd. The central bank rebuked four banks including UBS Group AG and Standard Chartered Plc for lapses in compliance controls. Chanyaporn Chanjaroen, Bloomberg