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FinCEN Advances Investment Adviser Rule to White House

U.S. officials forwarded a plan to impose anti-money laundering requirements on investment advisers to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, also known as OIRA, for review Wednesday, suggesting the long-anticipated measure is nearing publication.

The rule, prior versions of which the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, or FinCEN, pitched in 2002, 2003 and 2015 without success, would “prescribe minimum standards for anti-money laundering programs to be established by certain investment advisers” and require them to flag potentially illicit payments, according to a notice posted on OIRA’s website.

OIRA, a division of the White House’s Office of Management and Budget, reviews proposed rules for conflict with existing regulations or regulatory principles before their publication in the Federal Register brings them into force.

U.S. lawmakers first mandated the extension of AML rules to investment advisers, a multitrillion dollar industry that includes private equity firms and hedge funds, more than 20 years ago through the Patriot Act.

FinCEN withdrew initial proposals to subject the industry to AML requirements in 2008. A second effort pitched by the bureau in 2015 languished amid strong resistance from industry and expired after five years.

The Financial Action Task Force warned in 2016 that the sector, which controls trillions of dollars in assets, represents a significant gap in the U.S. framework against illicit finance.

Moneylaundering.com may update this coverage as more information becomes available.
Topics : Anti-money laundering
Source: U.S.: FinCEN
Document Date: January 12, 2024