A substantial number of compliance officers (about 44 per cent) lack confidence in the anti-money laundering (AML) programmes of their organisations, according to a new report. Read More

In the final part of an exclusive series of four webinars Elise Bean, former Staff Director and Chief Counsel of the U.S. Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, will explore the case of Riggs Bank. Riggs, a D.C. based commercial bank with branches around the world, was effectively shut down by means of a merger in 2005 following revelations that it handled deposits from Augusto Pinochet, the Saudi royal family and the dictator of Equatorial Guinea among others. Elise will consider what can be learnt for the case for financial crime prevention regimes today. Read More

A diplomatic cable said an investigation into mysterious $700m found in Najib Razak’s bank account had not absolved him of corruption Read More

Seven cases of money laundering, reportedly worth SR16 billion ($4 billion), are under investigation in Saudi Arabia, according to local media. Read More

After India's Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has now registered a money laundering case to probe the alleged payment of USD 5.7 million kickbacks in the 2008 Embraer aircraft deal. Read More

The auditor-general has cleared Foreign Minister Murray McCully of corruption over the $11.5 million Saudi Arabia Food Security Partnership but found “significant shortcomings” in the paper put to Cabinet to support the deal. “I share many New Zealanders’ concerns about the arrangements,” auditor-general Lyn Provost said in her report, released… Read More

The U.S. Treasury moved to disrupt the fundraising and operation of the Iranian-backed Hezbollah group on Thursday, imposing sanctions on four operatives and a firm that have assisted the organization, long seen as a terrorist outfit by Washington. In a related action, the U.S. State Department sanctioned Hezbollah commander Haytham… Read More

A number of Saudis and expatriates face trial for their involvement in money laundering amounting to SR14 billion. The money was transferred abroad through two so-called hawala transactions. Officials of the Bureau of Investigation and Public Prosecution (BIP) said that these are the largest illegal hawala transactions uncovered so far,… Read More

The Control and Investigation Board here is investigating over 23 cases of corruption in Al-Ahsa Municipality. A source said Dammam Penal Court is looking into the corruption cases which involve 16 suspects in total, three of them directors of departments in the municipality. “The corruption cases wasted SR68 million of… Read More

The Saudi Capital Market Authority (CMA) and the General Directorate for Financial Investigation Unit (FIU) in the Ministry of Interior, held a workshop recently to raise awareness of the fight against suspicious transactions at CMA headquarters in Riyadh. The workshop was opened by Turki Almjehd, manager of the Anti Money… Read More