Allegations of corruption, money laundering or sanctions breaches can stop any business in its tracks. Consequences for breach of financial crime prevention laws include personal and corporate criminal and civil liability, regulatory action and reputational damage. It is critical for all businesses to have appropriate financial crime prevention policies and practices to minimise and mitigate these risks.
We have many years of experience advising domestic and international businesses on the application of anti-money laundering, financial sanctions and bribery and corruption laws. Our clients range from financial institutions to energy market businesses and manufacturers to real estate businesses and broadcasters. We also provide support to clients operating in the leisure, transport and infrastructure, and retail sectors.
Working with our colleagues in the US, we help clients who need to comply with financial crime prevention laws on both sides of the Atlantic.
Our team of experts will be there to help deliver what you need, be it practical advice on procedures and governance programmes or robust, innovative solutions for managing internal or regulatory or enforcement investigations .
Most importantly, drawing together experts from across the firm, we tailor everything we do to be directly relevant to the sector in which you work. Making sure we not only provide outstanding legal expertise but apply it in an entirely relevant way to your business.
Prevention of money laundering and terrorist finance
We advise businesses both within and outside the financially regulated sector on drafting and amending their policies and procedures to comply with relevant legislation, including the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002, Terrorism Act 2000 and relevant versions of the Money Laundering Regulations, most recently the 2017 Regulations implementing the EU’s fourth Money Laundering Directive. We provide training for boards and staff on the impact of new requirements and their duties.
Sanctions regimes
Complying with AML laws does not equal compliance with sanctions restrictions. We help our clients to integrate financial and trade sanctions compliance into their business take-on and monitoring processes, and provide bespoke advice on sanctions restrictions and problems in specific transactions or contracts.
Prevention of bribery and corruption
All businesses operating in the UK must be aware of the Bribery Act and its effects on their business. We brief and train senior management and relevant staff, and advise businesses on assessing their risks and drafting their policies, contracts and procedures to comply with legislative and regulatory expectations. We help assess corruption risks in proposed third party agreements and acquisitions, and work with you to investigate concerns.
Facilitation of tax evasion
The Criminal Finances Act 2017 introduced a corporate offence of failure to prevent facilitation of tax evasion. We can help you to assess the risks you face and help you to develop policies and procedures to mitigate them.
Every business operating in the UK must stick to the financial crime laws. Break them, and you and your business is very likely to end up in serious trouble.
You could face criminal charges, civil liability, and regulatory action, not to mention your personal and business reputation ending up in tatters.
While many people will have some awareness of how important it is to prevent financial crime, a fair few are blissfully unaware of whether or not their business has everything in place to avoid falling foul of the law. Some of the main traps we help organisations avoid include avoiding breach of the laws on:
Anti-money laundering and terrorist finance
Financial and trade sanctions
Bribery and corruption
Corporate economic crime
Data and privacy breaches.
No matter your size, financial crime can bring your business to a halt. That’s why having robust financial crime prevention policies and practices is essential to minimise and manage risks effectively.
Your team
Your financial crime prevention team
This is where we step in. We’re here to help you keep on top of current requirements and upcoming changes. The secret to getting it right is in developing policies that are grounded in the way your business runs. There's no 'one-size-fits-all' solution. Because we make it our business to get under the skin of yours. Our specialist financial crime prevention lawyers work with our sector and industry experts to ensure our recommendations are perfect for you.
But all this good work can go to waste if your staff accidentally expose your business to financial crime. That’s why our team created an anti-bribery e-learning product to help raise employee awareness of the risks.
This unique and successful approach combines top-notch financial crime prevention insights with the power of truly understanding what makes your business tick. Over the years, our methods have been honed to help businesses both locally and internationally benefit. We’ve gained bags of experience working with financial institutions, energy market businesses, manufacturers, real estate firms, and broadcasters. We also regularly support those in the leisure, transport and infrastructure, and retail sectors to protect themselves.
In short, we help businesses to understand:
What the laws cover and how they apply
How to carry out an effective financial crime risk assessment and document the results
What due diligence is needed on staff, customers, counterparts and business partners
How to register with the authorities or make a report to them
What policies to put in place.
In need of a financial crime prevention lawyer? Look no further.
At Womble Bond Dickinson we have an exceptional team of talented lawyers and business professionals who can offer guidance and find the solutions right for your business. We have both broad and niche expertise across all our UK and US offices.
Putting anti-money laundering legislation in place for a large placemaking and regeneration group. We scoped and assessed risks, drafted risk-appropriate policies and procedures, conducted audits of activities and registrations, and developed staff training
Reviewing, updating, and regularly assessing anti-money laundering policies including customer due diligence for a UK-based payment institution with global money services
The application of financial crime prevention laws for several charities, supporting operational models and helping put controls in place over grants and donors
Reviewing financial crime prevention policies and procedures for a large luxury goods manufacturer, and creating and delivering training for staff
An internal investigation into marketing and sub-contracting practices for an engineering company to identify and eliminate opportunities for corrupt practices
Global hospitality guidance for an international energy company referencing local jurisdictional restrictions and government and international guidance.
Testimonials
“Knowledgeable team which understands timeliness and urgency when needed, exceptional and informative with a broad understanding of our industry.”
Legal 500 2023
“The team is very efficient and professional. Their engagement and quality of service are exceptional. They will propose the right strategy with realistic timelines for its delivery and assist in every step of the way until its successful execution.”
Legal 500 2023
“Experienced and knowledgeable", "A pleasure to work with.”
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