Aziz Rahman details the challenges facing banks in the wake of Afghanistan’s fall to the Taliban

With the Taliban having taken control of Afghanistan, Thomson Reuters’ Regulatory Intelligence asked Rahman Ravelli’s Aziz Rahman about the implications for financial crime.

Aziz explained that the swift change of power in Afghanistan meant that banks and other businesses involved in financial services should be looking closer than ever at how they are meeting their anti-money laundering and sanctions obligations.

The Financial Conduct Authority has stated that Afghanistan poses a high financial crime risk and the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation warned about conducting transactions with an Afghan connection.

Aziz emphasised the need for anyone who has dealings with Afghanistan to take heed of the warnings from the authorities.

He said that the FCA’s statement on Afghanistan is one more reminder of the need for banks to be carrying out comprehensive due diligence checks on customers at all times, as there is always a risk that a transaction could be linked to financial crime.

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