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AIA news
STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP
AIA broadens strategic partnerships with
AIA is pleased to announce its latest strategic partnership with Dell Technologies, the leader in digital transformation, providing digital technology solutions, products and services to drive business success.
This new exclusive partnership between Dell and AIA will provide members with total IT solutions, alongside a range of discounts, from 10% to 20% on laptops, desktops and other IT related accessories.
Announcing the partnership, AIA Marketing & PR Manager, Carl Jepson, said: “We are delighted to welcome world leader in IT solutions, Dell Technologies, as a new strategic partner. “Members will benefit from discounted Dell products, as well as access to highly trained small business technology advisors who can offer professional support and advice on business growth and IT needs.”
Dell Technologies is committed to transforming businesses, shaping the future of innovation and developing technologies to drive human progress through greater access to better technology for people with big ideas around the world. To find out more go to our dedicated Dell Technologies partner page.
AIA NEWS
ANTI-MONEY LAUNDERING
AIA submits evidence to the Treasury Select Committee Economic Crime Inquiry
The Association of International Accountants (AIA) has presented evidence to the United Kingdom Treasury Select Committee’s 2020 inquiry into anti-money laundering controls and systems in the UK.
The Treasury Select Committee launched a new inquiry in October 2020 to review what progress has been made in combating economic crime. This inquiry has two strands: ● anti-money laundering systems and the sanctions regime, including the Financial Crimes Enforcement
Network (FinCEN) papers and the work of the Office for Professional
Body Anti-Money Laundering
Supervision (OPBAS); and ● consumers, including emerging trends as a result of coronavirus and authorised push payment fraud.
Commenting on the launch of the inquiry, Mel Stride MP, Chair of the Treasury Committee, said: “The previous Committee made a series of recommendations on the UK’s effort to combat money laundering and what can be done to prevent consumers from being victims of economic crime. The current Committee will now examine what progress supervisors, law enforcement and the government has made in these areas.”
As a professional body supervisor recognised under Schedule 1 of the Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations (MLR) 2017 (as amended 2019), AIA recognises its key role in preventing economic crime and contributing to a robust approach to anti-money laundering safeguards. As part of the submission, an overview was provided of the work undertaken by AIA, as a supervisory body, to implement the money laundering regulations and ensure its members remain vigilant to the threat.
AIA works with other accountancy sector supervisory bodies through the Accountancy Anti-Money Laundering Supervisors’ Group (AASG) and more
widely with government, regulators and other sectors through the Anti-Money Laundering Supervisors Forum (AMLSF) and additional working and intelligencesharing groups. This enables a real public-private partnership which delivers a focused response to the threat of money laundering and terrorist financing.
As a membership organisation of professionals, AIA recognises that the regulations are also in place to protect members and safeguard against their being exploited by criminal elements to facilitate illicit activity. Therefore, AIA works to provide guidance and support, so members learn to recognise the red flags of money laundering and fulfil their obligations by reporting suspicious activity.
In its response, AIA outlined several key improvements and observations:
AIA works constructively with regulators, law enforcement agencies and other professional bodies to undertake its functions as a supervisor under MLR 2017. Whilst there are effective mechanisms for combatting economic crime, such as the Intelligence Sharing Expert Working Group (ISEWG), there is more that could be done. As the Economic Crime Plan progresses, there is a case for consolidating and reviewing the current number of overlapping working groups and committees to refocus on the reforms.
Accountants can be assessed to be either complicit or wilfully blind to money laundering risks, or at risk of being exploited by criminals due to negligence or being an unwitting accomplice to money laundering. It is arguable that accountants are more likely to be unwittingly involved in money laundering than undertake illicit activity. Professional bodies have an important role in providing support and guidance for members which is not available to non-registered individuals.
The public interest argument could be strengthened by consolidating and protecting the term “accountant”. Introducing this reform will help to strengthen the UK’s fight against economic crime and prevent unqualified and unsupervised individuals from evading effective oversight.
Maintaining up-to-date knowledge and disseminating emerging anti-money laundering risks is a key activity to help members recognise, respond to and report suspicious activity. Following the recent HM Treasury consultation, there should be a more structured and transparent plan around allocating money collected for the Economic Crime Levy.
AIA Director of Operations David Potts said, “Whilst there is still progress to be made to fulfil the government’s Economic Crime Plan 2019-22, as a supervisory body AIA has made significant contributions to progress to date, including strengthening internal controls, educating members, enforcing compliance and sharing intelligence.”
BREXIT
On 24 December 2020, the UK and the EU reached an agreement on the terms of their future relationship and the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement came into force from 1 January 2021.
AIA chief executive, Philip Turnbull said: “Avoiding the economic impact of a no deal scenario has been largely welcomed by businesses, along with the opportunities of new trading relationships, throughout the world and the prospect of developing the future relationship with the EU. At the end of a year which has seen significant economic upheaval and trading disruption, the agreement offers businesses the clarity and certainty that they require to plan effectively for the future.
© Gettyimages/istockphoto “However, it is important to realise the practicalities of this new agreement and whilst free trade is a welcome outcome, it does not mean a continuation of the previous arrangements. Businesses will have to navigate new rules and requirements, with some sectors feeling its consequences more acutely than others, and leaving the single market and customs union under these terms may also see businesses incur additional costs. “In relation to financial and related professional services, there are still some outstanding areas and the UK and the EU have agreed in a nonbinding declaration to establish a framework for regulatory co-operation by March 2021. AIA supports a future agreement that offers regulatory and supervisory cooperation, maintains mutual access to skills and talent and protects financial services.”
Planning and preparation are now key to all businesses to ensure a smooth transition. AIA will continue to provide members with the latest information and guidance to ensure that they can guide their clients on the most effective Brexit strategy. Resources continue to be updated and are available to members via their online account (MyAIA/Guidance and Insights/ Accounting & Auditing Insights).
FINANCIAL COMPLIANCE
AIA reaffirms its call for legal protection of the term ‘accountant’ to protect the public interest
The AIA event on “Protecting the Public Interest” took place 10 December 2020 and looked at the role of accountants and finance professionals in building public trust through professional and ethical conduct. Following multiple financial scandals, there has been a strong drive towards regulatory reform within the accountancy and audit sectors. AIA supports measures that strengthen the independence of auditors and ensure that a wider public interest is served in conjunction with the needs of company shareholders.
Professional bodies play a key role in safeguarding public confidence in financial services through maintaining a high standard of professional conduct. This is inherent at all stages of an accountant’s career and is influential in setting behavioural expectations. AIA serves the public interest by promoting the benefits of recognised, high quality, professional qualifications and delivering robust membership requirements, within a disciplinary framework, that gives additional reassurance and protection to the businesses that rely on accountancy services.
In addition, AIA operates a strong compliance agenda that seeks to educate and ensure adherence to legal and regulatory best practice within the anti-money laundering and economic crime sphere. Further to government consultations seeking to raise standards within the tax market and the recent Treasury Select Committee Economic Crime Inquiry, AIA has called for statutory control of the term “accountant” in recognition that additional safeguards and public interest concerns are met by consumers undertaking the services of a regulated individual.
AIA chief executive, Philip Turnbull, said: “There has been a fragmented approach to accountancy regulation in the UK which increases the risk to the public through poor advice from unqualified practitioners and economic crime. There is therefore a strong public interest argument that protecting the term ‘accountant’ would provide a robust mechanism to safeguard businesses and consumers.”
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