Dubai, UAE — A total of 137 companies operating from the UAE were fined AED65.9 million for failing to comply with the anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) legislation.
The Ministry of Economy fined these companies, which are operating in the UAE’s non-financial business or professions (DNFBP) sector, after carrying out inspection of 840 companies.
The initiative falls in line with the Ministry’s efforts to ensure the sector’s full compliance with the provisions stipulated by Federal Decree-Law No. 20 of 2018 on anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism and illegal organizations and its executive regulations and related laws. Adherence to the law is necessary to ensure the country’s full compliance with the international standards issued by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).
The Ministry of Economy conducted inspection tours to monitor the operations of designated DNFBP sector companies that are subject to its supervision, which include real estate agents and brokers, precious metals and gemstone dealers, auditors, and corporate service providers.
The Ministry of Economy revealed that a total of 831 violations committed by violators were found, including failure to adopt necessary measures and procedures to identify the risks of crime in their field of work. These companies failed to establish internal policies and procedures to check customer databases and transactions against names mentioned on the terrorism list, which was issued under the provisions of Cabinet Resolution No. 74 for 2020 on the UAE’s list of terrorists.