Singapore demands luxury sellers do more after laundering fiasco
Singapore is urging the country’s real estate agents, gemstone dealers and luxury car sellers to be more proactive in flagging suspicious customers, part of the country’s move to fight money laundering.
Authorities are requesting such so-called gatekeepers to improve information sharing and understanding of anti-money laundering, as part of a broad framework to strengthen supervision just over a year after a record S$3 billion ($2.3 billion) criminal case.
Any dealer of high-value goods “who knows, or has reasonable grounds to suspect that any property may be connected to criminal conduct” must file a report to the government, the financial regulator said in a joint release with the Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Home Affairs. “Those who fail to do so may be committing an offense that attracts sanctions,” it said.
The moves come at a critical juncture for the city-state, which is seeking to turn the page on its biggest money laundering scandal and address concerns it is attracting illicit wealth. It faces a scheduled onsite evaluation by the global financial crime watchdog, the Financial Action Task Force, in the second half of next year. At the same time, the city is contending with renewed competition from Dubai, Hong Kong and neighboring Malaysia to attract the wealthy.
More clarifications are expected to be announced for the property and legal sectors over the next few months, which involve providing guidance on beneficial ownership to lawyers as well as training real estate agents to look out for red flags.
The approach is one of “outreach and engagement” with groups like real estate agents and precious stone dealers, Minister of State for Home Affairs Sun Xueling said at a press conference. Authorities will be reaching out to car dealers as soon as next week. She said that this is focused on teaching them how to file suspicious transaction reports in a timely manner, and to notice signs like people paying for valuable items with cash.
Authorities will also highlight companies that show signs of inactivity on the registry of the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority, and are considering expanding a digital platform that lets banks share information on customers who show potential financial crime concerns.
Banking Sector
The Monetary Authority of Singapore is reviewing findings for the banking sector before taking any next steps, according to Alvin Tan, a minister of state who serves on the MAS’s board.
Safeguarding the clean reputation of the financial hub has become a concern for Singapore’s ruling party, led by new premier Lawrence Wong, ahead of an election which must be called by end-2025.
In the wake of the money laundering scandal, authorities have ramped up scrutiny of the banks, family offices and hedge funds that have flocked to the country. Of particular concern has been how the case ensnared banks including Citigroup Inc., Standard Chartered Plc and DBS Group Holdings Ltd., and how the launderers managed to spend billions on assets including luxury property, handbags and gold bars.
Authorities charged two private bankers in August for their alleged role in helping the ring. The scandal came to light last year when 10 China-born individuals were arrested, with all having being convicted and deported from the country since.
Singapore’s wealth management industry has boomed in recent years. Assets under management in the country jumped 10% to S$5.41 trillion last year. The country had about 1,650 single family offices that were granted tax incentives as of August.
