AML/CTF Compliance

Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing (AML/CTF) Compliance

AML/CTF Regime Overview

The Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (‘AUSTRAC’) is the administrator of the AML/CTF regime and the Financial Intelligence Unit (‘FIU’) in Australia.

The Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act 2006 (Cth) (the ‘AML/CTF Act’, the ‘Act’) and the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Rules Instrument 2007 (No.1) (Cth) (the ‘AML/CTF Rules’, the ‘Rules’) impose various obligations on persons captured by the definition of ‘reporting entity’ under section 5 of the Act. A reporting entity refers to a person that offers one or more designated services as defined in section 6 of the Act. Below are a few examples of designated services:

• Remittance and remittance network
• Managed investment schemes (MIS)
• Over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives issuers and market makers
• Currency exchange
• Financial planning

A Reporting Entity’s Obligations

A reporting entity may have a variety of obligations depending on the designated services it provides and how they are provided. A reporting entity will typically be required to:

• Establish and maintain an AML/CTF Program
• Have a designated AML/CTF Compliance Officer
• Train their staff on AML/CTF compliance solutions
• Conduct Know Your Customer (KYC)
• Comply with the ongoing customer due diligence (OCDD) obligations
• Comply with reporting obligations, such as suspicious matters reports (SMRs), threshold transactions reports (TTRs), International Funds Transfer Instructions (IFTIs), and annual compliance reports
• Review and update the AML/CTF Program

How We Can Help

As experienced AML/CTF compliance professionals, we can assist you with the compliance with the above-mentioned obligations, such as:

• AUSTRAC enrolment and registration (Registration is required for remittance service providers and also cryptocurrency exchange providers)
• Drafting an AML/CTF Program and the associated policies and procedures that are tailored to your business
• Conducting AML/CTF compliance inductions and refreshers for your team
• Providing further roles-based training and guidance to the team members who are involved in the AML/CTF compliance regime in your organisation
• Providing ongoing guidance and assist your team with KYC, OCDD especially transactions monitoring and reporting
• Reviewing and updating your existing AML/CTF Program
• Independent review of Part A of the AML/CTF Program

The Xenia Difference

Our founder Xiaoshu Liu not only has been working in the AML/CTF space for over a decade, she has also obtained a Master’s Degree AML/CTF and a Diploma of Applied AML/CTF. Leveraging on Xiaoshu’s expertise, our team focuses on understanding the practical challenges in the context of your business, so we can help you figure out how to solve the problems, and protect your business so you can focus on running the show. Find out more about our founder Xiaoshu and Xenia Compliance here.

To find out more about our tailored AML/CTF compliance services, click here to lock in an obligation-free virtual coffee with Xiaoshu.