Experts call for greater awareness of anti-money laundering laws

Academics and lawyers said Chinese financial institutions that expand globally must know very well the anti-money laundering laws, regulations and common practice of the countries they are in and improve their AML internal control system accordingly.

Wu Qing, deputy director of banking research at the Development Research Center of the State Council, said China attaches great importance to anti-money laundering but its laws and regulations in this field are different from those in other countries, thus requiring the overseas branches of commercial banks to be familiar with the rules of their host countries.

A Hong Kong-based lawyer, who declined to be named, said anti-money laundering is extremely complicated that even banks from the United States and Europe often face such problems.