RI securities firms comply with rules on money-laundering<\/p>\n
Dow Jones, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The Capital Market Supervisory Agency (Bapepam) said on Monday 70
\npercent of Indonesia's securities firms are in compliance with
\nnew regulations aimed at stamping out money-laundering and
\nfinancing for terrorist groups.<\/p>\n
\"Based on our recent monitoring inspection, only about 70
\npercent of Indonesia's total 183 securities firms comply with
\n(the new regulations),\" Bapepam Chairman Herwidayatmo told
\nreporters.<\/p>\n
Herwidayatmo didn't name the securities firms that are and
\naren't in compliance with the new regulations.<\/p>\n
\"There are no sanctions levied to firms that do not comply
\nwith the rules (after the inspections),\" Herwidayatmo said.<\/p>\n
But he added his office will revoke licenses of firms that
\ncontinue to fall below certain standards when the regulations
\ncome into full effect from July 15.<\/p>\n
Last week, about 50 inspectors from Bapepam visited all
\nsecurities firms to examine the records of every brokerage firm
\nto see whether the firms were in compliance with recently passed
\n\"know your customer\" regulations.<\/p>\n
Those rules are designed to ensure the firms know what kinds
\nof businesses their clients conduct - information that will help
\nauthorities spot transactions that could violate money-laundering
\nrules.<\/p>\n
Herwidayatmo said last week's inspections were aimed primarily
\nat identifying firms with problems in record-keeping so they can
\nimprove, rather than punishing firms that aren't yet in
\ncompliance.<\/p>\n
The U.S. and other Western nations have long worried about the
\npotential for money laundering and terrorist financing in
\nIndonesia, which has the world's largest Muslim population and
\nwhich the West generally regards as having poorly supervised
\nfinancial markets.<\/p>\n
Last year, Indonesia passed a money-laundering law amid
\npressure from foreign countries, and particularly the U.S., which
\nviews the regulations as a key part of efforts to cut off
\nfinancing for terrorist organizations such as al Qaeda.<\/p>\n
The initiative is part of a government effort to comply with
\ninternational standards overseen by the Financial Action Task
\nForce on Money Laundering, or FATF, which is based in Paris.<\/p>\n
FATF, an intergovernmental organization created in 1989, has
\nwarned it may compel international financial institutions to
\nimpose hefty premiums on all transactions with Indonesian
\ncounterparts unless the government strengthens its money-
\nlaundering law by September.<\/p>\n
Along with insisting that know-your-customer rules be
\nenforced, the FATF also has called on Indonesia to make several
\nother changes to its money-laundering laws.<\/p>\n
Among them, it wants a limit on the size of transactions that
\ncan be labeled \"suspicious\" to be removed, as well as stronger
\nprotection for whistle-blowers who report money-laundering
\ncrimes. The FATF would also like more information sharing between
\ncountries.<\/p>\n
Indonesia's parliament is considering amendments to provide
\nfor those recommendations, Herwidayatmo said.<\/p>\n
He expects parliament will ratify amendments before September.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/ri-securities-firms-comply-with-rules-on-money-laundering-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }