Parliament has passed stricter anti-money laundering laws, strengthening Singapore’s anti-money laundering (AML) and combating financial terrorism (CFT) regime.
In Parliament, Second Minister for Home Affairs Mrs Josephine Teo said that the Government is strengthening its three pillars of prevention, detection and enforcement against money laundering.
Stronger information sharing with enforcement agencies
The new laws allow government agencies like the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore and Singapore Customs to share tax and trade data respectively with the Suspicious Transaction Reporting Office (STRO).
The STRO is Singapore’s financial intelligence unit and is under the Singapore Police Force.
Greater intelligence on illegal transactions can be provided to law enforcement agencies and AML/CFT regulators for enforcement action.
In addition, the proposed laws allow authorities access to reports on suspicious transactions.
This means that when property agents and corporate service providers file suspicious transaction reports with the STRO, the Council for Estate Agencies (CEA) and Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (Acra) can access these reports.
The law was also amended to simplify how prosecutors can prove their cases regarding offences that happened overseas, especially when it can be challenging to get evidence from abroad.
Currently, the prosecution needs to show the laundered money in Singapore are benefits derived from criminal conduct, and must show the complete trail of the funds from the point the crime was committed.
Mrs Teo, who is also Minister for Digital Development and Information, explained that with the amendment, the prosecution will only need to prove that the money launderer knew or believed he was dealing with criminal proceeds.
Covering foreign environmental crimes
The proposed amendments will also allow Singapore law enforcement to investigate money laundering cases involving environmental offences like illegal mining, waste trafficking and illegal logging, even if they do not occur in Singapore.
Currently, they can only investigate money laundering related to offences that are also serious crimes under Singaporean law.
However, since environmental offences like illegal mining, waste trafficking and logging are not considered serious offences in Singapore, the authorities here have limited powers to investigate money laundering related to such offences.
The amendments would allow them to investigate such cases, typically flagged by authorities from other jurisdictions.
Another set of proposed amendments to the law relate to improving processes to deal with seized properties linked to suspected criminal activities.
Seizing and disposing of property linked to crimes
Changes to the law will also improve the process of dealing with seized properties linked to suspected criminal activities.
The proposed amendments will allow the court to order the sale of seized or restrained assets even if all parties do not consent to it.
But the sale would have to be in the interests of justice, or if the value of the asset is likely to depreciate, or undue costs are involved in maintenance.
Law and Home Affairs Minister K. Shanmugam said in May that the police have spent nearly $650,000 to maintain the assets seized or frozen in relation to the $3 billion money laundering case.
In cases where suspects have absconded, the suspect must personally present himself to law enforcement if they wish to make a claim to the seized properties.
Furthermore, the court may consider whether the property was obtained through legitimate sources such as income or investments, before the seized property may be released to a third party, even if that party has not committed any crimes.
Mrs Teo said: “The amendments will enable the Government to better deal with absconded suspects, through depriving them of the financial gains of their money laundering and other criminal activities, if they refuse to return to Singapore for investigations.”
Casino operators must conduct tighter checks on patrons
The new law also proposes addressing the role of casino operators regarding money laundering.
Casino operators are currently required to perform checks on patrons for single cash transactions involving $10,000 or more, or when they receive $5,000 or more in a single transaction to be deposited.
The law proposes lowering the quantum to cover single cash transactions or deposits involving $4,000 or more. The Gambling Regulatory Authority of Singapore will be empowered to require casino operators to consider proliferation financing risks when conducting CDD checks.
Mrs Teo said that these amendments continue to be subject to judicial oversight.
She stressed that the amendment is another step in strengthening Singapore’s AML/CFT regime and it will not be the last.
“Singapore will therefore have to continue to be vigilant, and we will not hesitate to further tighten our laws against money laundering where necessary, to ensure that our financial and business ecosystem remains reputable and trusted, and continues to thrive,” she added.
