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1 – 10 of over 1000Howard Chitimira and Sharon Munedzi
This paper explores the historical aspects of customer due diligence and related anti-money laundering measures in South Africa. Customer due diligence measures are usually…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper explores the historical aspects of customer due diligence and related anti-money laundering measures in South Africa. Customer due diligence measures are usually employed to ensure that financial institutions know their customers well by assessing them against the possible risks they might pose such as fraud, money laundering, Ponzi schemes and terrorist financing. Accordingly, customer due diligence measures enable banks and other financial institutions to assess their customers before they conclude any transactions with them. Customer due diligence measures that are utilised in South Africa include identification and verification of customer identity, keeping records of transactions concluded between customers and financial institutions, ongoing monitoring of customer account activities, reporting unusual and suspicious transactions and risk assessment programmes. The Financial Intelligence Centre Act 38 of 2001 (FICA) as amended by the Financial Intelligence Centre Amendment Act 1 of 2017 (Amendment Act) is the primary statute that provides for the adoption and use of customer due diligence measures to detect and combat money laundering in South Africa. Prior to the enactment of the FICA, several other statutes were enacted in a bid to prohibit money laundering in South Africa. Against this background, the article provides a historical overview analysis of these statutes to, inter alia, explore their adequacy and examine whether they consistently complied with the Financial Action Task Force Recommendations on the regulation of money laundering.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper provides an overview analysis of the historical aspects of the regulation and use of customer due diligence to combat money laundering in South Africa. In this regard, a qualitative research method as well as the doctrinal research method are used.
Findings
It is hoped that policymakers and other relevant persons will adopt the recommendations provided in the paper to enhance the curbing of money laundering in South Africa.
Research limitations/implications
The paper does not provide empirical research.
Practical implications
The paper is useful to all policymakers, lawyers, law students and regulatory bodies, especially, in South Africa.
Social implications
The paper advocates for the use of customer due diligence measures to curb money laundering in the South African financial markets and financial institutions.
Originality/value
The paper is original research on the South African anti-money laundering regime and the use of customer due diligence measures to curb money laundering in South Africa.
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GDP growth, money growth and inflation are essential to an economy's macroeconomic stability and have a direct impact on the policymaking process. Sri Lanka is currently concerned…
Abstract
Purpose
GDP growth, money growth and inflation are essential to an economy's macroeconomic stability and have a direct impact on the policymaking process. Sri Lanka is currently concerned about high inflation. Inflation is a monetary phenomenon. Inflation has been caused by monetary policy in several nations. According to the economic theories of Karl Marx, Irving Fisher and Milton Friedman, a continuous increase in the money supply causes inflation. This paper aims to investigate the relationship between Sri Lanka's GDP growth, money growth and inflation.
Design/methodology/approach
An econometric model and the economic theories of Fisher and Friedman are used to figure out how money supply, inflation and economic growth are linked. Between 1990 and 2021, data were gathered from secondary sources.
Findings
The increase in the money supply is found to cause inflation. Inflation has negative effects on both short- and long-term economic growth. Long-term, the increase in money supply has a negative effect on economic growth.
Research limitations/implications
According to research, the money supply and inflation are inextricably linked, and the money supply has a direct impact on economic growth. As a result, the government should have an appropriate monetary policy and proposals to control inflation levels and stimulate economic growth.
Originality/value
The paper adds to the existing literature in two ways. First, it fills in the lack of studies in Sri Lanka, where there are no papers on this important relationship, especially with a modern econometric study. Second, it tries to shed light on the asymmetric shocks (both positive and negative shocks and changes) between the three variables, which was not done in previous studies.
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This paper aims to investigate the determinants of global interest in central bank digital currency (CBDC). It assessed whether global interest in sustainable development and…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to investigate the determinants of global interest in central bank digital currency (CBDC). It assessed whether global interest in sustainable development and cryptocurrency are determinants of global interest in CBDC.
Design/methodology/approach
Google Trends data were analyzed using two-stage least square regression estimation.
Findings
There is a significant positive relationship between global interest in sustainable development and global interest in CBDC. There is a significant positive relationship between global interest in cryptocurrency and global interest in the Nigeria eNaira CBDC. There is a significant negative relationship between global interest in CBDC and global interest in the eNaira CBDC. There is a significant positive relationship between global interest in CBDC and global interest in the China eCNY. There is a significant negative relationship between global interest in cryptocurrency and global interest in the Sand Dollar and DCash.
Originality/value
The literature has not empirically examined whether global interest in sustainable development and cryptocurrency are factors motivating global interest in CBDC. This study fills a gap in the literature by investigating whether global interest in sustainable development and cryptocurrency are factors motivating global interest in CBDC.
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Elvira Anna Graziano, Flaminia Musella and Gerardo Petroccione
The objective of this study is to investigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the consumer payment behavior in Italy by correlating financial literacy with digital payment…
Abstract
Purpose
The objective of this study is to investigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the consumer payment behavior in Italy by correlating financial literacy with digital payment awareness, examining media anxiety and financial security, and including a gender analysis.
Design/methodology/approach
Consumers’ attitudes toward cashless payments were investigated using an online survey conducted from November 2021 to February 2022 on a sample of 836 Italian citizens by considering the behavioral characteristics and aspects of financial literacy. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to test the hypotheses and to determine whether the model was invariant by gender.
Findings
The analysis showed that the fear of contracting COVID-19 and the level of financial literacy had a direct influence on the payment behavior of Italians, which was completely different in its weighting. Fear due to the spread of news regarding the pandemic in the media indirectly influenced consumers’ noncash attitude. The preliminary results of the gender multigroup analysis showed that cashless payment was the same in the male and female subpopulations.
Originality/value
This research is noteworthy because of its interconnected examination. It examined the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on people’s payment choices, assessed their knowledge, and considered the influence of media-induced anxiety. By combining these factors, the study offered an analysis from a gender perspective, providing understanding of how financial behaviors were shaped during the pandemic.
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This study aims to examine the effects of prior small-scale changes to wealth on subsequent risky choices.
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to examine the effects of prior small-scale changes to wealth on subsequent risky choices.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper opted for a laboratory experiment in which subjects perform two sequences of risky tasks. In between these two sets, the author transfers money for real for a randomly selected half of the subjects. Data on choices before and after the transfer of money are used to estimate risk attitudes and analyze whether the transfer of money affected attitudes to risk.
Findings
The author finds that the money gain does not change subjects' risk preferences – neither in a within- nor in a between-subject design. This suggests that individuals' risky choices are consistent with their constant absolute (CARA) risk aversion preferences, a result that supports a key assumption in recent literature on the calibration critique of decision theories and the view that individuals engage in narrow framing.
Research limitations/implications
Because of the relatively small transfer of money, the research results may lack generalizability.
Practical implications
The paper includes implications for the reference-dependent and other theories that explain how prior outcomes affect risk-taking behavior in sequential problems.
Social implications
The results are relevant to the research community studying risk-taking behavior as the results shed new light on a well-known result put forward by a seminal paper by Thaler.
Originality/value
This paper fills in an identified gap in the literature which is the need to test the house-money effect in a more realistic setting (over repeated risk-elicitation tasks, with money given outside the lotteries and in a within-subject design).
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Howard Chitimira and Sharon Munedzi
Customer due diligence measures that are employed in the United Kingdom (UK) to detect and combat money laundering are discussed. The UK adopted a progressive regulatory and…
Abstract
Purpose
Customer due diligence measures that are employed in the United Kingdom (UK) to detect and combat money laundering are discussed. The UK adopted a progressive regulatory and enforcement framework to combat money laundering which relies, inter alia, on the use of customer due diligence measures to regulate and curb the occurrence of money laundering activities in its financial institutions and financial markets. However, other regulatory measures that could have contributed to the effective combating money laundering in the UK will not be explored in detail since the article is focused on the reliance and use of customer due diligence measures to curb money laundering activities. Accordingly, the strength, flaws and weaknesses of the UK anti-money laundering regulatory and enforcement framework are examined. Lastly, possible recommendations to address such flaws and weaknesses are provided.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper discusses customer due diligence measures that are used in the UK to detect and combat money laundering.
Findings
It is hoped that policymakers and other relevant persons will use the recommendations provided in the paper to enhance the curbing of money laundering in the UK.
Research limitations/implications
The paper does not provide empirical research.
Practical implications
The study is useful to all policymakers, lawyers, law students and regulatory bodies in the UK.
Social implications
The study seeks to curb money laundering in the UK society globally.
Originality/value
The study is original research on the use of customer due diligence measures to detect and combat money laundering in the UK.
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Howard Chitimira and Sharon Munedzi
The anti-money laundering (AML) frameworks of many countries were generally influenced by the international best practices of money laundering that were first established in 1988…
Abstract
Purpose
The anti-money laundering (AML) frameworks of many countries were generally influenced by the international best practices of money laundering that were first established in 1988 through the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS). The general belief is that these international best practices are applicable in all jurisdictions, although most countries are still affected by money laundering. The international best practices are universal measures that were developed as a yardstick to control and curb money laundering globally. Nonetheless, international best practices for money laundering are not tailor-made for specific jurisdictions and/or countries. Therefore, it remains the duty of respective jurisdictions and/or countries to develop their own context-sensitive AML measures in accordance with international best practices. An overview of the AML international best practices that were developed and adopted by several countries are analysed in this paper. These include customer due diligence measures established by the BCBS, the financial action task force (FATF) standards, as well as the ongoing monitoring and the risk-sensitive approach that were implemented to curb money laundering globally.
Design/methodology/approach
The article analyses the AML international best practices that were developed and adopted by several countries. These include customer due diligence measures established by the BCBS, the FATF standards, as well as the ongoing monitoring and the risk-sensitive approach that were implemented to curb money laundering globally.
Findings
It is hoped that policymakers and other relevant persons will use the recommendations provided in the paper to enhance the curbing of money laundering in financial institutions globally.
Research limitations/implications
The paper does not provide empirical research.
Practical implications
The study is useful to all policymakers, lawyers, law students and regulatory bodies globally.
Social implications
The study seeks to curb money laundering in the economy and society globally.
Originality/value
The study is original research on the use of AML/counter financing of terrorism international best practices to curb money laundering activities globally.
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Kristian Keskitalo and Jaakko Väyrynen
This paper aims to analyse the virtual currency regulation especially in Finland, Sweden and Norway. Different member states had a bit differently incorporated regulation of…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to analyse the virtual currency regulation especially in Finland, Sweden and Norway. Different member states had a bit differently incorporated regulation of AMLD5. Finland has gone the furthest in regulation and even issuers of virtual currency are under the Finnish regulation.
Design/methodology/approach
In one hand, the study approach is legal dogmatics, but in other hand it is comparative legal research. Both approaches can be found in this paper.
Findings
The EEA is going from a more fragmented regulatory landscape based on 5th Anti-Money Laundering Directive to a more uniform regulatory approach provided by a legislative package that regulates crypto assets more broadly, coupled with an overhaul of the anti-money laundering rules, bringing them into a single European rulebook. Finland has taken a step further in this matter. Therefore, it would be reasonable for the AMLD5 scope to be expanded in this respect. It is a welcome development that the regulation will be unified and that investor protection will be better taken into account in the future as well.
Originality/value
This paper gives a picture of what kind of challenges is there in Fennoscandic in terms of money laundering regulation of virtual currencies. On the other hand, this paper brings into the discussion the rather clever solutions of Fennoscandic (especially Finland) regarding money laundering of virtual currencies.
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Vladlena Benson, Umut Turksen and Bogdan Adamyk
This paper aims to focus on the need for an enhanced anti-money laundering (AML) regulation for decentralised finance (DeFi) to protect the integrity of global financial systems…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to focus on the need for an enhanced anti-money laundering (AML) regulation for decentralised finance (DeFi) to protect the integrity of global financial systems against illicit activities. Research highlights the requirement for a robust regulatory strategy for the fast-paced DeFi evolvement.
Design/methodology/approach
This study used doctrinal legal research by analysing legislation, which involved creating use cases to illustrate different aspects of potential illicit activities via the DeFi ecosystem. Various DeFi applications were assessed for the potential regulatory responses and outcomes.
Findings
This paper offers valuable insight into the regulatory challenges presented by DeFi. This study addresses the blind spots leveraged by criminals afforded by the DeFi’s decentralised nature. This paper offers a comprehensive examination of DeFi regulatory challenges based on use-case scenarios and provides recommendations for regulators on how to address them effectively.
Originality/value
This paper proposes measures for regulatory authorities to minimise money laundering risks through new channels such as decentralised exchanges, non-custodial wallets and cross-chain bridges. This study concludes with the future directions for DeFi regulation and AML compliance.
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Howard Chitimira and Oyesola Animashaun
Banditry and terrorism constitute serious security risks in Nigeria. This follows the fact that Nigeria is rated as one of the leading states in the world that is plagued by…
Abstract
Purpose
Banditry and terrorism constitute serious security risks in Nigeria. This follows the fact that Nigeria is rated as one of the leading states in the world that is plagued by terrorism. Terrorists and bandits usually embark on predicate crimes such as kidnapping, smuggling, narcotics trade, and similar trades to finance their terrorist enterprises in Nigeria. The funds realized by criminals from nefarious sources such as sales of narcotics and ransom from kidnapping are usually laundered to make their criminal enterprises self-sustaining. Thus, all “dirty” money is laundered so as not to attract the attention of law enforcement agents. The funds realized through receipt of ransom from kidnapping, smuggling or funds from sponsors are laundered through channels such as bureau de change, which are difficult to monitor by the Nigerian authorities due, in part, to flaws and loopholes in the current anti-money laundering and anti-terrorist laws. This paper aims to adopt a doctrinal and qualitative desktop research methodology. In this regard, the current anti-money laundering and anti-terrorist laws are discussed to explore possible measures that could be adopted to remedy the flaws and loopholes in such laws and combat money laundering and financing of terrorism in Nigeria.
Design/methodology/approach
The article analyses the regulation and combating of money laundering and terrorist financing activities in Nigeria. In this regard, a doctrinal and qualitative research method is used to explore the flaws in the Nigerian anti-money laundering laws so as to recommend possible remedies in respect thereof.
Findings
It is hoped that policymakers and other relevant persons will use the recommendations provided in this article to enhance the curbing of money laundering and terrorist financing activities in Nigeria.
Research limitations/implications
The article is not based on empirical research.
Practical implications
This study is important and vital to all policymakers, lawyers, law students and regulatory bodies in Nigeria and other countries globally.
Social implications
The study seeks to curb money laundering and terrorist financing activities in Nigeria.
Originality/value
The study is based on original research which is focused on the regulation and combating of money laundering and terrorist financing activities in Nigeria.
Details