Bankers, UN team discuss ways of curbing money laundering
Wednesday, 6 June 2007
FE Report
The country's leading bankers have urged the visiting United Nations (UN) delegation on counter-terrorism to update its list of suspects involved in terrorist financing time to time.
They also requested the delegation to consult with authorities concerned before inclusion of any name of individual or organisation in the list.
The appeal was made by the members of the Association of Bankers Bangladesh (ABB) during a meeting with the visiting UN delegation in the city Tuesday.
During the meeting, the UN delegation laid emphasis on proper implementation of the UN Security Council resolutions, particularly those relating to terrorist financing.
The meeting was presided over by Chairman of the ABB and Managing Director of the National Bank Limited M Aminuzzaman while some senior bankers took part on discussion.
The meeting discussed ways of curbing money laundering and measures against financing of terrorism through proper monitoring and efforts.
It also discussed the issue of inward remittances and stressed on compliance of the existing provision on 'know your customer (KYC)' properly to check illegal fund transfer.
The bankers informed the UN delegation that most of the expatriate Bangladeshis are labourers, who send small amount of money through banking channels to support their families back home.
The three-member UN delegation, led by Elizabeth Joyce, Senior Legal Officer of the Counter-Terrorism Committee of the UN Executive Directorate, suggested the bankers to take more careful measures regarding cash transactions to avoid oversight of any suspicious deal.
The other members of the UN team are Carton Greene, al-Qaida/ Taliban Monitoring Team and Asian Development Bank Official Cheong Ann Pug.
Regarding suspicious transactions, a central bank official informed the meeting that the Bangladesh Bank had already asked the commercial banks for regularly reporting on suspicious transactions.
"We want the UN update its sanction list to avoid any wrong action," Chairman of the ABB and Managing Director of the National Bank Limited M Aminuzzaman told the FE after the meeting.
The ABB chairman also expressed hope that the team would go back to the UN headquarters with a positive observation about Bangladesh.
Regarding terrorist financing, Aminuzzaman said there was no terrorist activity in the country considering the existing global terrorism phenomenon.
Only few terrorist incidents were noticed in the country over the past two to three years, which were of local nature, he added.
"Such terrorist activities did not have any cross-boarder connection and did not receive any financial support through banking channels," the ABB chairmen observed.
The 11-member UN Counter Terrorism Committee arrived in the city Saturday last on a week-long visit to Bangladesh to exchange ideas on counter terrorism and anti-money laundering.