Myanmar, Thailand to cooperate in money laundering suppression

Myanmar and Thailand are due to sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) here later this month to
cooperate in suppressing money laundering especially against laundering of funds obtained from
transnational crimes, a local weekly journal reported Monday.

The MoU, to be inked between the Central Control Board (CCB) of Myanmar and the Anti-Money
Laundering Office of Thailand, would provide for the two countries in information sharing on money
laundering control, the Department Against Transnational Crimes was quoted by the Myanmar Times as
saying.

According to the journal's earlier report, Myanmar is introducing a plan to fight money laundering
in the country and the draft of the plan, once finalized and approved by the CCB, will be submitted
to the Paris-based Financial Action Task Force (FATF) which had listed Myanmar as among
non-cooperative countries and territories in dealing with money laundering.

The FATF move partly hindered Myanmar's chance to obtain aid from international financial
institutions, the Myanmar police force blamed, saying that although the task force withdrew other
measures against the country after it enacted the Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters Law in 2004,
Myanmar still remains on the said list until it fully implements the necessary laws.

Myanmar promulgated a law in June 2002 to control money laundering and financial institutions such
as banks are required to report to the CCB their clients' fiscal activities and report any cashes
exceeding 100 million kyats (100,000 US dollars) and any other suspicious account activities.

However, no suspected laundering has so far been reported although the board had monitored over
2,000 reports on cash and property transactions, according to the International Relations Department
of the Home Ministry.

Meanwhile, the CCB has provided trainings to some dozens of officials from more than 20 state and
private banks in Yangon and Mandalay on countering money laundering and financing terrorism.

To step up fight against money laundering, Myanmar has set up an eight-member investigation body
under the CCB to launch probe into matters legalizing money and property obtained by illegal means.

Meanwhile, the Myanmar authorities revoked in the end of March the business licenses of two local
private banks -- the Myanmar Mayflower Bank (MMB) and the Asia Wealth Bank (AWB)-- which had been
under government investigation for allegedly linking with money laundering since December 2003.

As part of its increased international cooperation in the aspects, Myanmar joined in signing the UN
Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime in April 2004.

Source: Xinhua