Stijn De Meulenaer, lawyer at Everest, acted as an expert for De Standaard to provide more clarification on a money laundering report by ING.
What is this about? Briefly explained: a businessman wants to transfer money via his Luxembourg account to an American investment broker, but refuses to explain where the money comes from. The result: the Dutch bank ING refuses to execute the transaction and files a report with the Financial Information Processing Unit (CFI), better known as the anti-money laundering cell. In order to transfer the money, the clerk had asked for his identity documents and inquired about the origin of the money, something the businessman refused. The bank was convicted earlier this month after the businessman took the matter to court. The court of appeal ruled that ING had not investigated the matter thoroughly enough and ‘manifestly failed’ in its duty of investigation.
Banks, accountants, and notaries, among others, are obliged to report any suspicious transactions to the CFI. If they do so, it clears them from criminal prosecution. Of all the reports made, only about 11% lead to further investigation.
According to Stijn De Meulenaer – expert at Everest – the ruling of the court of appeal could have major consequences for future money laundering reports. This will create tension for the banks, who will probably consider whether they should be more cautious in their reports to the anti-money laundering cell from now on.
Source: De Standaard