Elevate your Compliance with Intelect Group by using our monthly round up of news items relevant to AML regulated businesses.
Cyber Security
IBM Cost of a Data Breach
The IBM Cost of a Data Breach report for 2023 is now available and is essential reading if you want to understand the implications of not being prepared for a cyber-attack, which can happen to any organisation, large or small. Some of the headlines,
The average cost of a data breach reached an all-time high in 2023, of USD 4.45 million, a 2.3% increase from the previous year.
Healthcare data breach costs have increased by over 50% with the financial services sector coming a close second.
Smaller organisations faced considerably higher data breach costs as compared to 2022.
Due Diligence
Seychelles in the spotlight
An investigation by Finance Uncovered has revealed a link between the Seychelles, companies connected to Russia and the UK.
Journalists are reported to have identified 927 UK-registered firms that were set up on behalf of hidden owners by nominees linked to Alpha Consulting, based in the Seychelles.
Victoria Valkovskaya, the agency’s Russian founder has resided in the Seychelles since 2005 and has apparently confirmed shell companies have been used repeatedly to set up hundreds of UK firms.
One example was the case of Green Line LP, a UK firm (now dissolved) which was controlled by a Russian advertising entrepreneur linked to an international network of fraudsters connected to fake herbal remedies.
The Seychelles has recently been added to the list of non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes.
Regulatory
UK Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023
The UK’s Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act received royal assent last week, bringing about new anti-money laundering and anti-corruption reforms in one of the world’s largest financial markets.
Of major significance is that Companies House receives enhanced powers to verify the identities of company directors, remove fraudulent businesses from the register and share information with law enforcement.
From a business perspective it is important to understand what is being referred to as the ‘identification doctrine’. A failure to comply will mean that businesses can be held criminally liable for the actions of their senior managers who commit an economic crime.
