…FIU, SOCU on the trail of new money-laundering reports

By Alexis Rodney
THE Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) continues to work with the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) in monitoring new cases of money laundering with improved intelligence analysis, Director Matthew Langevine has said.

He is also urging the speedy establishment of the Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Authority and the appointment of a lawyer and accountant for the unit. The FIU Director said on Tuesday that the unit has had a few new cases which have been passed on to SOCU. While he could not give statistics at the time, he told the Guyana Chronicle that the FIU remains committed to its original task of keeping money laundering at bay.
“We’ve been working closely and reporting as required to SOCU. There have been a number of cases that we have been working and adding new cases,” Langevine told the Guyana Chronicle.

Staff appointment
Regarding the posts of Lawyer and Accountant, the FIU Director said the critical positions have been vacant for a very long time. And although persons have been identified to fill the vacancies, the final decision sits in the hands of the National Assembly. He said while Parliament is currently in recess, he hopes that the issue would be addressed as soon as the session resumes, as the two positions are critical to the effective functioning of the FIU. He said too that the very important AML authority is very important to the process of cooperative oversight of the FIU, a very important arm based on the law.

Meanwhile, Langevine said the Financial Unit continues its preparation for the fourth round of assessment of Guyana by the Caribbean Financial Action Task Force (CFATF) which is expected in 2022.

He said currently the unit, in collaboration with the Chambers of the Attorney General, has been conducting consultations and meetings with both stakeholders and especially reporting entities to bring them up to date with the regulations. According to him, many reporting agencies have still not yet come on board and that the FIU was working towards rectifying that.

“The fourth round requires a demonstration of effectiveness. We have to ensure that the reporting agencies are on board. The main ones have started, friendly societies, cooperatives etc. We are working also with the supervisory authority to be engaged in the oversight of these reporting authorities”, he told the Guyana Chronicle.
Back in May, the FIU had said that it would be moving to have lawyers, accountants and those in private practice be brought under regulation as part of the FIU requirement to ensure Guyana clears the Fourth Round of Mutual Evaluation by the Caribbean Financial Action Task Force.

Updating on that, Langevine said both the FIU and the attorney general had met with the two groups. He said the professionals are aware of their expectations. One of the things needed he said however, is the appointment of a supervisory authority for the groups. He said there will be ongoing conversations which he hopes will lead to a common understanding.

In preparation for its Fourth Round of Mutual Evaluation, Guyana must have in place a robust regulatory and supervisory framework for all the reporting sectors. According to the FIU, the implementation process therefore requires ensuring that all reporting entities under the AML/CFT Act of 2009, comply with sections 15, 16, 18, 19 and 20 of the said Act.
These provisions relate, among other things, to the conducting of customer due diligence, record-keeping and maintenance, submitting suspicious and other reports to the FIU and appointment of a compliance officer.

Langevine also addressed criticisms of the FIU’s failure to publish its annual reports. He explained that an amendment to the AML ACT in 2015 no longer requires the unit to publish its annual reports. He said information coming out of the FIU can be requested by the AML authority. “The FIU is no longer required to publish reports. It is illuminated under sections 111”, he told this publication.