Abu Dhabi's Ministry of Economy announced on Monday that it had imposed administrative penalties of about Dh76.9 million on 225 companies for money laundering and terror financing violations.

In addition, 50 establishments were suspended for three months for failing to register with the Financial Intelligence Unit's anti-money laundering system (goAML). These firms were suspended in the third quarter of 2023.

Using the (goAML) system, the Financial Intelligence Unit receives reports of suspicious transactions. It analyses transactions and activities to check for money laundering and terror financing activities. The aim is to prevent financial criminal activities that may affect the UAE's efforts to comply with the requirements of the International Financial Action Task Force (FATF).

For failing to comply with the UAE's anti-money laundering and countering terrorist financing (AML/CFT) legislation, the ministry imposed fines worth Dh22.6 million on 29 companies in the designated non-financial business or professions (DNFBP) sector on August 10.

According to the ministry, the supervision will encompass both the mainland and free zones' "designated non-financial business and professions sectors.". These are real estate brokers and agents; dealers in precious metals and stones; auditors; and corporate service providers.

The ministry noted that these firms would remain suspended till they register in the goAML system. If they don’t rectify their status in three months, more severe penalties will apply.

Companies were urged to comply with relevant legislation, apply the highest levels of compliance, and contact the relevant authorities if they had any inquiries or if they needed technical assistance.

A monitoring and inspection campaign was conducted to enhance transparency in the business sector. Over the past couple of months, the Ministry has organized workshops to strengthen measures to combat money laundering and financing of terrorism as well as to improve regulatory compliance requirements.