The Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE) imposed a financial sanction of AED 352,000 ($95,854) on an exchange house operating in the country, due to it failures to achieve appropriate levels of compliance related to Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Sanctions Compliance Framework as per the deadlines specified by the law.

The penalty was imposed pursuant to Article 14 of the Federal Decree Law No. (20) of 2018 on Anti-Money Laundering and Combatting the Financing of Terrorism and Financing of Illegal Organisations (AML/CFT Law)

According to a statement from the central bank, a sufficient period was provided for all exchange houses operating in the UAE to remedy any shortcomings and ensure compliance in accordance with the Federal Decree Law No. (20) Of 2018 and its executive regulation. All exchange houses were informed that further shortcomings would result in penalties as specified by law.

CBUAE will continue to work closely with all financial institutions in the UAE to achieve and maintain high levels of AML/CFT compliance and will continue to impose further administrative and/or financial sanctions, according to the law, in cases of non-compliance, the statement said.