Tighter rules for Malaysian dealers, agents, and accountants? BNM to review money laundering risks next year

Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) plans to conduct the next National Risk Assessment in 2027 to better understand money laundering and terrorism financing risks in the Designated Non-Financial Businesses and Professions (DNFBP) sectors.

Deputy Governor Datuk Marzunisham Omar emphasized the importance of practical insights from these sectors to ensure effective policy-making.

Recent enforcement actions by BNM highlight the critical need for robust compliance in anti-money laundering (AML) and countering-terrorism financing (CFT) measures, with failures risking the integrity of Malaysia's financial framework.

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 23 — Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) will conduct the next iteration of the National Risk Assessment in 2027, enabling a deeper assessment of the money laundering and terrorism financing risks facing the Designated Non-Financial Businesses and Professions (DNFBP) sectors.

Deputy Governor Datuk Marzunisham Omar said the findings will support the development of more targeted policies, guidance, and mitigation measures tailored to the specific risks faced by each sector.

“Your practical insights will be essential. They will help ensure that our policy responses remain effective, proportionate and grounded in the realities faced by each sector,” he said in his welcoming remarks at DNFBP Compliance Conference 2026, held yesterday.

According to BNM, DNFBP refers to a group that consists of a parent company incorporated in Malaysia or any other type of legal person exercising control and coordinating functions over the rest of the group, together with branches and/or subsidiaries that are subject to anti-money laundering (AML), countering the financing of terrorism (CFT) and countering proliferation financing (CPF) policies and procedures at the group level.

Meanwhile, Marzunisham said the AML, CFT and CPF framework depends not only on strong laws and sound policies, but also on credible supervision and enforcement.

He said the central bank takes non-compliance seriously, as weaknesses in any part of the system could undermine the integrity of Malaysia’s entire AML/CFT framework.

Recent joint enforcement actions involving regulatory and law enforcement agencies reinforce this point.

BNM and the Companies Commission of Malaysia (CCM) recently took enforcement action against a company secretary for failing to submit suspicious transaction reports relating to foreign nationals suspected to be involved in an international scam syndicate.

A Labuan investment bank was subjected to enforcement action by BNM and the Labuan Financial Services Authority (LFSA) following material deficiencies in customer due diligence. This affected the firm’s ability to assess customers’ potential involvement in illicit overseas activities, as well as delays in submitting suspicious transaction reports.

“These cases may involve different sectors and circumstances, but they convey the same message: Weak due diligence, vigilance and reporting create space for criminals to operate.

“Professional services must never become the gate through which illicit funds acquire the appearance of legitimacy, whether knowingly or unknowingly,” Marzunisham added. — Bernama

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马来西亚国家银行 (BNM) 计划于 2027 年进行下一次国家风险评估，以更好地了解指定非金融企业和专业 (DNFBP) 部门的洗钱和恐怖主义融资风险。

副州长拿督马祖尼沙姆·奥马尔强调了来自这些领域的实际见解对于确保有效政策制定的重要性。

马来西亚国家银行最近的执法行动凸显了严格遵守反洗钱和打击恐怖主义融资措施的必要性，否则将危及马来西亚金融体系的完整性。

吉隆坡，10 月 23 日讯——马来西亚国家银行 (BNM) 将于 2027 年进行下一轮国家风险评估，以便更深入地评估指定非金融企业和专业 (DNFBP) 行业面临的洗钱和恐怖主义融资风险。

副州长拿督马祖尼沙姆·奥马尔表示，这些调查结果将有助于制定更有针对性的政策、指导方针和缓解措施，以应对各行业面临的具体风险。

“你们的实践见解至关重要。它们将有助于确保我们的政策应对措施保持有效、适度，并立足于各行业面临的实际情况，”他在昨天举行的 2026 年 DNFBP 合规大会上致欢迎辞时说道。

根据马来西亚国家银行 (BNM) 的说法，DNFBP 指的是由一家在马来西亚注册成立的母公司或任何其他类型的法人实体组成的集团，该母公司对集团的其他部分行使控制和协调职能，以及受集团层面反洗钱 (AML)、打击恐怖主义融资 (CFT) 和打击扩散融资 (CPF) 政策和程序约束的分支机构和/或子公司。

与此同时，马祖尼沙姆表示，反洗钱、反恐融资和中央公积金框架不仅依赖于强有力的法律和健全的政策，还依赖于可信的监督和执法。

他表示，央行严肃对待不合规行为，因为系统任何部分的薄弱环节都可能破坏马来西亚整个反洗钱/反恐融资框架的完整性。

最近监管机构和执法机构开展的联合执法行动也印证了这一点。

马来西亚国家银行和马来西亚公司委员会（CCM）最近对一名公司秘书采取了执法行动，原因是该秘书未能提交与涉嫌参与国际诈骗集团的外国公民有关的可疑交易报告。

纳闽一家投资银行因客户尽职调查存在重大缺陷，受到马来西亚国家银行（BNM）和纳闽金融服务管理局（LFSA）的执法行动。这影响了该银行评估客户可能参与海外非法活动的能力，并导致提交可疑交易报告的延误。

“这些案件可能涉及不同的行业和情况，但它们传达的信息是相同的：尽职调查、警惕和报告不力为犯罪分子提供了活动空间。

“专业服务绝不能成为非法资金获得合法性伪装的途径，无论是有意还是无意，”马祖尼沙姆补充道。——马来西亚国家通讯社（Bernama）

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