New Zealand fighting money laundering with Asia-Pacific partners: minister

The New Zealand authorities are building partnership in the Asia-Pacific region to fight money laundering and counter the financing of terrorism, Justice Minister Amy Adams said Monday.

"The transnational reach of money laundering, terrorist financing, and the financing of proliferation crime transcends cultural, social, linguistic and geographical borders. It must be met with a concerted response -- states working together as part of a strong international network," Adams told delegates to the Asia-Pacific Group (APG) on Money Laundering in Auckland.

New Zealand is participating in regional and international forums, such as the APG and the Financial Action Task Force, to strengthen bilateral and multilateral relationships, Adams said in the published speech.

"For example, New Zealand's (Police) Financial Intelligence Unit recently completed a cooperation agreement with their counterparts in China and another agreement with Nepal is nearing completion," said Adams.

About 360 delegates from around the world are taking part in the international gathering, including 41 members from the Asia- Pacific region and international organizations such as the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the United Nations.

"This meeting is an opportunity for us to share our knowledge and ideas with other countries, as well as learn about what more we can do to improve our compliance with international obligations and best practices," said Adams, adding "Money laundering is an insidious crime, and it's becoming more challenging to detect, with international criminal networks increasingly using modern technologies and communications."

The government had taken steps to strengthen New Zealand's anti- money laundering and countering financing of terrorism laws in an effort to improve compliance with international obligations and best practices, said Adams.

Recent government reforms included the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Act (AML/CFT Act), which helped the authorities to better detect and deter money laundering and the financing of terrorism, Adams added.

The act, passed in 2013, required financial institutions, casinos and trust and company service providers to regularly report suspicious financial activity to the authorities.

As a result, the number of reports to the Financial Intelligence Unit had tripled to more than 12,000 reports in the 2013-2014 financial year, up from 3,500 reports in 2012-2013.

The Organized Crime and Anti-corruption Legislation Bill, which was currently before Parliament, would also help the authorities tackle money laundering and other related illicit activities, including bribery and drug-related crime. Endi