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By implementing Directive (EU) 2015/849 of the European Parliament and of the Council of May 20, 2015, the Polish legislator decided to pass the Act of 1 March 2018 on counteracting money laundering and financing of terrorism (AML). In connection with it, many interpretative doubts have arisen. The purpose of this paper is to explain one of them, namely, to indicate whether the provision by a company of a registered office for economic activity to another company from the same capital group means that the company granting its headquarters has achieved the status of an obligated institution pursuant to Article 2 section 1 point 16 letter c) of AML.

This study is based on a grammatical, systemic and functional interpretation. It is enriched with national and supranational regulations, doctrinal considerations and current jurisprudence.

On the basis of the conducted analysis, the author concludes that providing a headquarters to another company from the same capital group may mean meeting the conditions of an obligated institution within the meaning of Article 2 section 1 point 16 letter c) of AML and obtaining by the company providing the registered office the status of an obliged entity.

This paper contributes to the clarification of the AML interpretation problem. Adopting a similar approach when analysing other obligated institutions may positively influence the consolidation of the correct interpretation path of AML regulations.

The aim of this paper is to assess the relevance of cryptocurrencies with regard to the money laundering risk on the market and to present widespread money laundering techniques and recognizable patterns of abuse. In addition, this paper aims to find an answer to the question to what extent the measures of the fifth EU Anti-Money Laundering Directive (AMLD) as well as other appropriate preventive measures are sufficient to reduce the money laundering risk in the area of virtual currencies (VC).

Firstly, the analysis requires a consideration of the theoretical foundations of money laundering methods, as well as a presentation of the technical foundations of cryptocurrencies and their ecosystem. Secondly, it is discussed to what extent VC are suitable for money laundering, which characteristics enable them to launder money and which new money laundering techniques result from this. In addition, a comparison of different money laundering risk classification is done in relation to VC from the perspective of different actors in the financial market.

Owing to their simple electronic storage and transferability, crypto assets pose a concrete risk of money laundering. Their inclusion in the fifth AMLD was therefore a necessary step by the European legislator. However, the question arises to whether the directive and the further preventive measures presented in this paper sufficiently fulfil the objective of reducing the money laundering risk in relation to VC. One positive aspect is the inclusion of the crypto custody business as a financial service in the German Banking Act. According to the definition in Section 1 (1a) sentence 2 no. 6, the offering of wallets is subject to authorization and the offering party becomes an obligated party within the meaning of the Germany Money Laundering Act. From a supervisory point of view, the new licensing requirement is very much welcomed, as the custody of private cryptographic keys entails considerable risks. However, non-custodian wallet providers who do not store the private keys of their users, are not covered. A closer analysis of the amending directive to the fourth EU AMLD reveals that other relevant players in the crypto market, such as mixer and tumbler services, are also not covered.

It is quite clear that cryptocurrencies and the blockchain technology will continue to accompany one in the coming years. Further credit institutions arising in the market exposed to the described risks will be seen. The paper will therefore present and evaluate possible risk reduction/options for anti-money laundering for new and existing financial institutions.

The purpose of this paper is to analyze politically exposed persons (PEPs) according to Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Recommendations and assess the identification process followed by financial institutions to create a harmonized regional model for PEPs identification in Latin America.

FATF Recommendation No.12 states that financial institutions should identify PEPs. To do so, the latter uses either an internal identification system or an external database. Within this framework, the purpose of the research work is to determine whether the procedure adopted by the regulated entities complies with the requirements of the regulations. Both analytical and interpretative methods have been used for this purpose.

In accordance with FATF Recommendation No.12, national and foreign PEPs, as well as officials of relevant international organizations, close relatives and closest associates must be identified. This wide range of people forms an hybrid type of PEPs. Because of the lack of a harmonized identification policy, it is likely that some people who meet these conditions may not be spotted.

PEPs control success relies on accurate and prompt identification. Therefore, it is crucial to create an inter-state model of harmonized identification at a regional level in Latin America. It includes not only the participation of the obligated subjects but also the sector entities associated to the concerned economic activity.

Recent research questions the innocence of companies outside the current EU money laundering regulation in terms of contributing to the externality problem of money laundering. The purpose of this paper is to examine how including anti-money laundering as an element of the EU corporate social responsibilities (CSR) directive can contribute to solving the externality problem of money laundering. Based on the principles of CSR and the economic effects of disclosure duties, this paper analyzes the implications an introduction of anti-money laundering policies and disclosure duties can have on corporate clients and the combatting against money laundering. Furthermore, it is the intention of this paper to argue how such a regulatory change can help the financial companies dividing “good” and “bad” clients to prevent money laundering from happening.

The method of this paper is a functional approach to law and economics. It seeks to enhance the efficiency of the regulatory framework combatting money laundering by including economic incentive theory.

Based on the regulatory framework of the fourth anti-money laundering and counter terrorist financing directive and the directive on criminalizing money laundering, this paper argues that inclusion of anti-money laundering in the EU CSR directive will contribute to solving the externality problem of money laundering in the EU. Additionally, the expansion of the regulatory framework can start a culture, where corporate clients to the financial sector will take active steps toward combatting money laundering.

The paper identifies a way to change the corporate perception of anti-money laundering prevention from having an incentive of minimal compliance/“race-to-the-bottom” to be a possible element of competition between companies through their CSR strategy. While most research focuses on the financial sector in terms of money laundering, this paper takes the next step and includes corporate clients in the financial sector.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the use of a dual‐audit/joint‐audit process and the level of compliance with IFRS in listed Kuwaiti financial institutions.

An OLS‐regression model was used to test the relationship among dual‐audit/joint‐audit process and the level of compliance with IFRS‐disclosure. The sample was based on 33 firm observations in 2006.

The main results reveal that financial institutions audited by dual‐auditors were more compliant with IFRS‐required disclosure than financial institutions audited by joint‐auditors.

The authors have assumed that the work done by both auditors is as per the Central Bank of Kuwait (CBK) circular which obligates both auditors to do their fieldwork independently and then consolidate their work before issuing the final audit report. In the authors’ opinion, it is less likely that both auditors will not comply with CBK regulation, especially because CBK has the right to ban a non‐compliant audit firm from auditing banks. The authors did not ask audit firms whether they are complying with this circular because it was believed that audit firms would not disclose a non‐compliance issue with regulators to outsiders.

This paper provides empirical evidence about the effectiveness of using dual‐auditors in promoting compliance with IFRS‐disclosure.

To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to explore the association between the levels of compliance with IFRS‐disclosure and the dual/joint audit process in the financial institutions listed on the Kuwait Stock Exchange.

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the impact of the recent financial crisis and the need for prudential management and effective supervisory and regulatory measures in ensuring the stability and integrity of the financial sector, especially financial institutions, such as banks. The aim is to increase awareness about the global Financial Action Task Force (FATF) standards and the efforts at enforcing these standards.

The paper examines the impact of the global financial crisis of 2009 and relates it to inadequate enforcement of prudential and regulatory measures. The paper argues that effective implementation of the core and key FATF Recommendations would assure some modicum of stability, productivity, and integrity of the financial system. It also discusses briefly the monitoring process of the implementation of these standards. The paper adopts a policy approach with a view to explaining the importance and benefits of implementing these standards in all jurisdictions. Thus, it covers the work of the anti‐money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) global network in promoting financial sector stability.

The mutual evaluation process is a demonstration of the commitment of member states to implement the FATF standards and remedy deficiencies in their systems. However, many countries, in particular low‐capacity countries, face challenges in the implementation of the FATF standards. These are: competing priorities for scarce government resources; severe lack of resources and skilled workforce to implement government programmes, including AML/CFT programmes; weaknesses in legal institutions; the dominance of the informal sector and a cash‐based economy; poor document and data‐retention systems; and in some cases, very small financial sector with limited exposure to the international financial system.

For the AML/CFT standards to be enforced more effectively, developing countries need more technical assistance, especially in preventing the flow of proceeds of corruption to developed countries' financial systems. The strategy to recover the proceeds of crime has proven to be problematic, but no better approach has yet been articulated. This should constitute an issue for further research.

The paper aims to increase awareness to the FATF standards and the work of all the global network organizations involved in the fight against ML/TF. It is useful particularly to financial institutions who wish to protect the integrity of their system and promote stability.

Microfinance institutions (MFIs) provide credit to low-income beneficiaries, enabling them to gain access to financial assistance. To ensure that clients are protected, all MFIs should adhere to basic corporate governance principles to guarantee uniform standards, transparency and good corporate governance practices in their institutions. Hence, the purpose of this paper is to explore the client protection practices and sustainable performance of Amanah Ikhtiar Malaysia (AIM), a leading MFI in Malaysia.

Closed-ended questionnaires were distributed to managers and assistant managers at 76 AIM branches across the peninsular Malaysia. A response rate of 68 per cent was achieved from the total questionnaires distributed.

The result shows that the level of client protection in AIM is high. It shows that accountability and debt collection process have a significant influence on the level of sustainable performance of AIM, whereas transparency and transaction costs have an insignificant impact on the level of sustainability of AIM. Consistent with the agency theory and institutional theory, the result also implies that having better debt collection process policy and structure, and accountability among management will enhance the level of sustainability of AIM.

Previous studies focused on the single issue of sustainability in microfinance, such as on repayment performance among the poorest people whom AIM served as clients. However, studies on the accountability towards clients are still underdeveloped by researchers. Hence, the current study fills the gap by examining whether client protection affects the sustainability of AIM.

To draw lessons learned from recent anti‐money laundering enforcement actions.

After providing a brief introduction to the AML regime, this article reviews the recent high‐profile enforcement actions. The article then examines what compliance lessons can be learned from these recent cases. Put differently, the article attempts to identify those measures that firms can take now to avoid being subject to headline‐grabbing enforcement actions in the future.

Lessons learned from key recent enforcement actions include the following: SAR filings matter and ensuring an adequate SAR regime means ensuring both systems and staffing are commensurate with an institution's activities; an AML program can only function well if it is calibrated properly to the risks that the institution's businesses face; business growth needs to be accompanied by AML compliance growth; as institutions expand globally, they need to consider how to apply their AML programs across geographies and to ensure that common best practices are being followed by all employees, wherever located; and financial institutions must ensure not only that they have written policies and procedures, but also that those procedures are followed in practice.

Draws the most important lessons learned from recent key anti‐money laundering enforcement actions.

Analyzing educational evaluation not only implies investigating its goals, methods, and dimensions, but also studying the rationale behind it. The present contribution relates this rationale to the interests and the goals set by the agents involved in the formulation and implementation of educational evaluation. When it comes to the evaluation of higher education in Brazil, the specific topic of this chapter, those agents are not restricted to the scope of public departments and boards of education; also included are national and international companies as well as inter- and supranational organizations that directly or indirectly set up quality and efficiency standards for educational processes. Particularly, the rationale and the goals of the higher education evaluation models developed in Brazil from the 1970s up to the present will be focused on, highlighting the close relationship between educational assessment and educational regulation.

The purpose of this study is to examine the extent of audit report lag and its association with governance mechanisms in the Islamic banking institutions in Malaysia.

The extent of audit report lag is defined by the number of days from a company’s financial year-end to the signature date on its audit report. The sample of the study comprises 112 observations of Islamic banking institutions’ financial reports for the period 2008-2014. A balanced panel data analysis is performed to analyse the association between the extent of audit report lag and governance mechanisms.

The findings show that the extent of audit report lag for the sample selected ranges from a minimum period of 7 days to a maximum period of 161 days, and the extent of audit report lag is approximately two months on average. A fixed effects analysis indicates that audit committee expertise and audit committee meeting have significant association with the extent of audit report lag. On the other hand, board independence, audit committee size and Shari’ah board expertise have insignificant association with the extent of audit report lag. In addition, one control variable (Islamic bank size) is found to be significantly associated with longer audit report lag.

The findings provide useful feedback for Malaysian policymakers on the past and current practices of financial reports and of governance mechanisms. The findings of the study would help the policymakers in monitoring the Islamic banking institutions’ compliance with financial reports submission requirements. The policymakers perhaps could relook into governance mechanisms that reduce the extent of audit report lag in the Islamic banking institutions and implement regulations to strengthen them.

Unlike the majority of prior studies that investigated the association between the extent of audit report lag and governance mechanisms, this study provides two contributions. First, to the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first piece of research that examined the association between governance mechanisms and the extent of audit report lag in Islamic banking institutions. Second, the study examined the association of new governance variable, namely, Shari’ah committee expertise which has not been previously examined in the literature of audit report lag.