Money Laundering
According to the World Bank, corrupt leaders of poor countries steal as much as US $40 billion each year in stolen assets they then stash overseas. Once removed, funds are extremely difficult to recover.
On a national level, too, it has been estimated that £23 - 57 billion of dirty money is laundered in the UK each year. While it is not possible to determine what proportion of this figure represents financial proceeds from bribery and corruption, concerns remain that the sums are substantial and embrace both looted state assets and the proceeds of procurement bribery.
UK institutions and organisations have been used as repositories or intermediaries for stolen funds from several countries, including Bangladesh, Kenya, Nigeria, Pakistan and Zambia. Like many other countries, the UK must operate within the framework of its obligations under international arrangements and conventions to which it is a party, notably the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and the UN Convention against Corruption (UNCAC).
However, the UK has an added responsibility arising from its unique status. London’s international reputation has often attracted money launderers who find it easier to mingle their dirty funds in a larger centre with substantial flows of legitimate money.
As a member of the Commonwealth with close connections to many developing countries, the UK is a natural haven for corrupt Commonwealth politicians wishing to stash their looted funds.
It is essential therefore that the UK’s defences against money laundering (ML) are robust enough to prevent corrupt money and assets from finding sanctuary within its jurisdiction. However, if those defences are breached, the UK must cooperate promptly to enable stolen or corruptly-acquired assets to be repatriated to requesting states.
TI-UK work on anti-money laundering
As an anti-corruption body, Transparency International UK (TI-UK) is concerned with preventing money laundering since the facility to launder the proceeds of corruption gives rise to the commission of bribery and corruption offences in the first place. TI helped international banks to establish the Wolfsburg Principles (the global anti-money laundering guidelines for private banking) in 2000.
Publications
In 2009 TI-UK published Combating Money Laundering and Recovering Looted Gains: Raising the UK’s Game.
Arab Spring
In February 2011 TI-UK called on the UK Government to implement a four-point action plan over the need for urgent UK action on the stolen assets of corrupt Middle East leaders.
