Money Laundering Risk Assessment Report Singapore

Singapore’s Money Laundering (ML) National Risk Assessment (NRA) forms part of Singapore’s continuing efforts to maintain the effectiveness of its anti-money laundering (AML) regime amidst our evolving risk landscape. It synthesizes the ML risks observed by the Singapore law enforcement agencies, and Singapore’s Financial Intelligence Unit – the Suspicious Transaction Reporting Office (STRO), and supervisory authorities, as well as feedback from private sector entities and counterpart foreign authorities.

About the report

The ML NRA providers an overview of Singapore’s key ML risks, taking into account an extensive range of qualitative and quantitative threats, vulnerabilities and control factors. Singapore’s key ML threats arise from a range of predicate offences, as criminals seek to exploit Singapore’s political and economic stability, strong rule of law, infrastructure, and wide range of services that our financial and other sectors provide.

The ML NRA identifies Singapore’s key threats as fraud (particularly cyber-enabled fraud), organised crime, corruption, tax crimes and trade-based money laundering.

The banking (including wealth management) sector is assessed to pose the highest ML risks, while among the designated non-financial businesses and professions (DNFBP) sectors, corporate service providers pose higher ML risks. Other higher risk sectors include digital payment token service providers, cross-border money transfer service providers (including remittance agents), licensed trust companies, real estate sector and precious stones and metals dealers.

The findings from the ML NRA, together with other risk assessments conducted by the authorities, serve as a guide for all stakeholders, including Financial Institutions (FIs) and DNFBPs, to detect and keep pace with the priority and emerging risks, take appropriate preventive measures as well as to allow more timely detection, disruption and enforcement on illicit activities.

FIs and DNFBPs, especially entities in sectors which are assessed to pose higher ML risks, should also take reference from the ML NRA in assessing their risks and enhance their controls accordingly.