As European Union leaders negotiate a final version of the bloc's latest anti-money laundering directive, questions remain on how its proponents will overcome legal and political hurdles to its implementation.
An EU plan approved Thursday that could force banks in member-states to open accounts for most applicants would complicate anti-money laundering compliance efforts, according to critics.
A group of European Parliament members will soon weigh in on whether lawmakers should create an EU-wide police force and more closely cooperate on border security to stem financial crime, according to Bill Newton Dunn, a British lawmaker.
As the compliance expectations of European regulators grow, banks should proactively move to adopt future changes outlined in proposals for the EU's Fourth Money Laundering Directive, according to the former global head of compliance at ABN Amro.
Europe's biggest financial institutions are largely prepared to comply with newly proposed amendments to the EU's anti-money laundering directive, compliance officers and banking attorneys say.
The European Commission will propose two measures next week to update the EU's Third Anti-Money Laundering Directive and a primary regulation governing wire transfers, a spokesperson for the organization said Friday.
A European Union financial reform bill scheduled for a vote Monday could impose new anti-money laundering requirements on offshore investment vehicles, including U.S. hedge funds, say analysts.
The European Commission proposed Wednesday a data sharing agreement that would grant European Union investigators access to information on U.S. bank accounts in cases of suspected terrorist ties.
As the deadline nears for the 25 member countries of the European Union to implement the provisions of the EU Third Money Laundering Directive, U.S. bankers have become aware that it's tougher in some provisions than the USA Patriot Act and other U.S. banking regulations.