New EU directive on money laundering to take effect

In June 2015, the European Union adopted its fourth Anti-Money Laundering Directive. EU member states will have until summer 2017 to implement the new rules in their national legislation.

Businesses subject to the rules will have to install internal controls to combat money laundering and terrorist financing activities. While similar regulations are already in place, the new directive will provide more specific and narrow requirements.

The new regulation is part of European efforts to effectively fight corruption across the Union. Due to the new requirements being proposed, there will be an increased obligation on businesses, who should ensure that they are prepared for these changes, and have measures in place to train staff, update policies and procedures, and implement new controls. As a part of this, businesses in the EU are encouraged to install mechanisms to detect fraud and money laundering schemes, including new technologies facilitating systematic misuse of funds.

By design, the new directive significantly strengthens the role of whistleblowers, who, due to their insight knowledge as employees, are the most effective detectors of corrupt practices and misuse of corporate funds. Thus, encouraging whistleblowers to speak up against malpractice directly supports the implementation of the new directive.

A whistleblowing service serves as one of the most efficient measures to take in order to do so. Not only does it lower the bar for employees to speak up against corrupt practices; it also provides an effective mechanism to follow up on disclosures.

For more information about the WhistleB whistleblowing service, which is adapted to national guidelines on whistleblowing on all EU markets, please contact us on info@whistleb.com