How to protect your business from money laundering

It is estimated that serious organised crime costs the UK £24billion per year.  Whether it’s drug trafficking, people trafficking or cybercrime, the illicit proceeds need to be cleaned and this is where you and your business could be affected.

Criminals use a variety of methods to clean dirty money, these fall into two categories:

• Cash based money laundering; essentially the physical movement of money.   Often breaking large sums down into smaller amounts or buying assets which are then sold, making it harder to track the original source of funds
• High-end money laundering, which focuses on high value ‘transactions’ abusing the financial sector to hide and disguise the illegally gained money

When looking for a business to clean their dirty money, criminals will seek those that can be easily accessed and exploited.  This places cash intensive businesses at the top of the list as it will not be uncommon for these businesses to show a large number of cash transactions – at first sight anyway.

You may be unsure whether you are considered cash intensive, if you fall into one of the following, you could well be the perfect target for money laundering:

• Retail
• Pubs
• Restaurants

Remember, industry patterns of trading can be monitored and if money laundering activity is occurring you will no doubt see periods of increased revenue that are not in line with natural economic growth.  This could be viewed as a red flag and lead to further investigations.  It is therefore important that you are familiar with your figures, ensuring you spot unusual patterns in trading.

Engaging with an accountant is one of many steps you can take to keep on top of your figures.

Avanti accountants do so much more than year end, and even if that’s all you need, we’re here to advise and assist as and when – helping you to have real time information and the whole picture.  A business owner who has knowledge of their businesses financial picture will be far less attractive to criminals.

Call Avanti today to see how we can make you a less attractive proposition (08000) 388 799

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