Financial Intelligence Unit, Excise Dept. ink agreement to exchange info on criminal matters

The Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Excise Department to exchange information related to investigations and prosecutions of money laundering, terrorist financing and other related crimes.

The agreement was inked last month in terms of the provisions of the Financial Transactions Reporting Act, No. 6 of 2006 (FTRA), the Central Bank said in a press release published on Friday (Feb.16).

J. M. S. N. Jayasinghe, Commissioner General of Excise and E. H. Mohotty, then-Director of FIU signed the MOU on behalf of the respective institutions in the presence of Dr. Nandalal Weerasinghe, the Central Bank Governor, who is also the Chairman of the Anti-Money Laundering/Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) National Coordinating Committee.

As money laundering and terrorist financing are financial crimes with a global presence, which could threaten the stability of national and global economic and financial systems, the Central Bank said this MoU would enable both institutions to exchange information which is vital for prevention, detection and prosecution of such offences.

Since 2008, the FIU has entered into 44 MoUs with foreign counterparts as well as 11 MoUs with domestic government agencies including Sri Lanka Customs, Department of Immigration and Emigration, Inland Revenue Department, Department for Registration of Persons, Sri Lanka Police, etc., in order to share information to strengthen the AML/CFT framework of the country.