How we Ensure that Bluerow Complies with Money Laundering Regulations

How we Ensure that Bluerow Complies with Money Laundering Regulations

In June last year, new and amended Money Laundering Regulations were introduced into the UK, overriding the previous 2007 regulations. These are designed to reduce the impact of organised crime and the transferring of money that funds terrorism in the UK and globally.

Criminals use money laundering to change money into ‘clean money’ or other assets that have no clear link to their original criminal activities. In the estate agent profession, money laundering can involve:

- Paying an estate agency a large amount of money only to reclaim it later
- Buying a property to let or sell it illegally to gain a legitimate source of funds
- Using different multiple bank accounts to make transactions to disguise their criminal behaviour

At Bluerow we take these regulations extremely seriously and regularly ensure that we have controls in place to minimise the risk of money laundering happening.

Here are a few ways in which we Ensure that we Comply with Money Laundering Regulations:

-        - We are registered with HMRC for anti-money laundering supervision
- We are members of the NAEA Propertymark who help to protect and educate estate agents and people buying and selling their homes
- We have a nominated senior member at Bluerow who is appointed to act as our Money Laundering Officer. They are responsible for carrying out thorough risk assessments and ensuring that we have the required policies, controls and procedures in place to minimise the risk of criminals exploiting the business for financial crime
- We carry out customer due-diligence on all our customers and owners before entering into business or proceeding with transactions from them
- We have a system in place for keeping copies of due diligence and records regularly updated
- Our team have been trained on risks and are fully aware that they are required to report any suspicious behaviour or knowledge that a customer is engaged in money laundering. A report is then raised and sent to the National Crime Agency, who assess and determine whether a transaction can proceed
- We have a strict and efficient record keeping system, where we file buyer and seller’s proof of identities and all other required information for five years after we have ceased a business relationship with them.

If you have any questions or concerns relating to Money Laundering, call our experienced team on 0151 709 9638.