MONEY LAUNDERING

The Oman Law Digest 2009

Money Laundering Law [RD 34/02] requires banks and financial institutions and other natural and juridical entities involved in financial dealings to conduct ‘Know Your Customer’ checks and verify their customer’s identity and address before opening accounts, taking securities for safe custody, granting safe deposit facilities or engaging in any other business dealings. Banks and financial institutions are required to develop internal systems to combat money laundering through: (i) development and enforcement of internal policies, systems and procedures, including appointment of qualified senior officers at the senior management level to enforce such policies, systems and procedures; and (ii) development of ongoing training programmes for officers to keep them informed of new techniques used in money laundering transactions and improving their abilities to identify such transactions for combating the same. Banks and financial institutions are required to: (i) retain records of transactions for a minimum period of ten years; (ii) adopt precautionary measures to uncover and prevent money laundering transactions; and (iii) assist in criminal prosecution for violations.