BB issues anti-money laundering guidelines for NBFIs
Bangladesh Bank (BB) has issued compulsory anti-money laundering (AML) guidelines for non-banking financial institutions (NBFIs) to help combat money laundering and terror financing, reports yesterday.
Similar to those for commercial banks, the guidelines emphasized that NBFIs should know their clients and keep watch on their financial transactions with a foolproof monitoring system.
The central bank in a master circular issued Monday advised the NBFIs to formulate policies and procedures to operationalise and ensure the observance of these guidelines, which will come into immediate effect.
These guidelines, the BB said, have been issued in the context of the provisions of the Money Laundering Prevention Act, 2012 and the Anti Terrorism Act, 2009 to help control financial frauds, identify money laundering and suspicious activities.
These guidelines aim at safeguarding the NBFIs from being unwittingly used for transfer or deposit of funds derived from criminal activity or for financing of terrorism, the BB said.
Besides the KYC (know your clients), the guidelines made it mandatory that all NFBIs should establish a Central Compliance Unit, appoint an anti- money laundering compliance officer at all branches and issue Unique Customer Identification Code (UCIC).
It said the NBFIs should also classify the accounts as dormant of those holders did not fulfill the KYC procedure. These accounts, however, would be made operational once the KYC procedure is done.
For operating accounts of Non-Resident Bangladeshis (NRBs), the NBFIs have been advised to follow the Foreign Exchange Regulation Act, 1947.
The guidelines have also included specific directions to complete the KYC procedure and monitor the accounts of the influential persons like head of state or of government, senior politicians, senior government, judicial or military officials, senior executives of state owned corporations and important political party officials.
