UK money laundering law news 05/03/2009 British Madoff firm to face anti-money laundering investigation

Madoff Securities International Limited, a British business predominantly owned by Bernard Madoffs family, will be investigated under UK money laundering law, according to recent press reports.

An American-appointed receiver for the UK business, which closed in December 2008 following Madoffs arrest on charges relating to the operation of a massive Ponzi scheme, has applied to withdraw from the case, arguing that the British investigators were better placed to investigate the allegations of economic crime in this company.

The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has commented that proving charges of international fraud can be difficult, and the Daily Mail, suggesting that money laundering offences are easier to prove, reports that the SFO has begun examining whether the proceeds of crime committed in the US has been transferred through the books of the UK business in breach of the Money Laundering Regulations 2007.

Richard Alderman, director of the SFO, has also stated that the body expects several further cases of financial crime to reach British courts in 2009. These include some that the City of London Police has referred to as mini-Madoffs, smaller Ponzi schemes in the UK, and breaches of UK money laundering law.

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