Circular CN/2023/4509: Advisory Notice on Expatriate Accounts

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

فَرِيدُونُ مَالِيَاتِي يُنِت
FINANCIAL INTELLIGENCE UNIT

مَالِدِيفُس مُونِتَرِي أُوثُورِتِي
MALDIVES MONETARY AUTHORITY

Circular No: CN/2023/4509

1 June 2023

To: All Banks

Advisory Notice: Expatriate Accounts

It is observed that a high volume of transactions is conducted via expatriate accounts, indicating misuse of those accounts by the customers to facilitate illicit activities. It was also observed that Banks have allowed expatriate customers to maintain numerous accounts when the purposes of those accounts are for depositing salary and managing personal expenses.

Some of the illicit activities observed includes:
1- Illegal foreign exchange activities
2- Trade based money laundering
3- Routing business proceeds
4- Money muling
5- Tax evasion and tax avoidance
6- Layering transactions to avoid audit and paper trails

Therefore, Banks are advised to:
1- Ensure all transactions are conducted for the intended purposes (i.e. salary and personal expenses) 2- Consider limiting the number of accounts each expatriate can maintain with the Bank 3- Implement measures to strengthen Banks customer due diligence efforts on a risk-based approach

Banks are further advised that this Unit do not recommend the implementation of anti-money laundering and combatting the financing of terrorism measures that may cause unintended consequence of excluding legitimate businesses and consumers from the formal financial system.

Yours Sincerely,

[Signature]

Abdulla Ashraf
Head of Financial Intelligence Unit

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Phone: +960 3012139 :تليفون
Email: fiu@mma.gov.mv :ایمیل
Website: www.mma.gov :ویب سائٹ
Web page: www.mma.gov.mv/#/fiu :ویب پیج
Maldives Monetary Authority
Boduthakurufaanu Magu
Male' 20182, Maldives