FCA report spotlights lawyers and accountants, OFAC sanctions spyware firm enablers, and the FATF publishes India report

A new report by the Office for Professional Body Anti-Money Laundering Supervision (OPBAS), part of the FCA, has identified weaknesses in the AML compliance of the UK legal and accountancy sectors’ Professional Body Supervisors (PBSs). Its assessment found that while most PBSs can demonstrate compliance, none are effective across all recommended areas. Weaknesses include: 

• Poorly designed supervisory programs and an inadequate application of a risk-based approach. 
• Inconsistent commitment to information-sharing, especially for live cases. 
• Ineffective enforcement action, with a decline in the number and value of fines issued. 

OPBAS encourages PBSs to implement lessons from the report, including by participating in information-sharing gateways with stakeholders, such as Companies House, introduced under the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023. 

The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has announced new sanctions against enablers of the Intellexa Consortium, a firm described in the announcement as a significant national security threat to the US thanks to its development of spyware known as ‘Predator’. OFAC has sanctioned five individuals, either senior management or beneficial owners of businesses associated with Intellexa, as well as one entity based in the British Virgin Islands. 

The FATF has published India’s latest Mutual Evaluation Report (MER). The report found a high level of effectiveness in India’s AML/CFT regime, with the country rated either ‘compliant’ or ‘largely compliant’ with 37 of the FATF’s 40 Recommendations. However, it also listed several priority actions for India, such as: 

• Enhancing its understanding of the ML risks associated with human trafficking. 
• Improving coverage of domestic PEPs.  
• Addressing delays in the prosecution of ML/TF cases. 
• Implementing stronger preventive measures in the non-financial sector and for virtual asset service providers. 

The report marks progress for India. Its previous MER, in 2010, rated it as ‘compliant’ or ‘largely compliant’ with only 25 recommendations, before a follow-up report stated India had achieved ‘satisfactory’ compliance levels with the core and key recommendations. 

Until next week,

Andrew Davies, Global Head of Regulatory Affairs.