The Chartered Accountants Ireland issued their AML Supervision Report for 2023/24 recently. The Institute supervises almost 1,700 firms, of which 72% (1,222 firms) are in the RoI.
It is apparent from the report that some of the future emerging risks arising from the 2023/24 AML supervision cycle include:
- Crypto currency – a very limited number of firms have exposure to this risk;
- The increasing prevalence of artificial intelligence – there is so much that is unknown about how AI may be used to facilitate money laundering;
- Money laundering or investment scams associated with green finance;
- The continued potential for post-Covid fraud such as that arising from the Restart/Bounce Back loans and Income Support Schemes continues to exist, and it remains a continuing risk especially for the insolvency profession;
- Issues arising from the Ukraine crisis also remain in focus – although media interest in the ongoing war has waned, there is still the concern of displacement activity relating to sanctioned individuals and entities.
The Report identifies various risk factors to which accountancy firms may be exposed, including but not limited to the following:
- Higher risk services;
- Higher risk clients;
- Exposure to high-risk jurisdictions;
- Complex firm structures; and
- Poor regulatory history.
There will be more extracts from this interesting report in the coming weeks.
For more on engagement and representation letter templates and a variety of CPD webinars on money laundering and other accounting/audit related topics, please go to our website for:
- Our latest CPD Webinar on The Main Changes in Irish GAAP (recorded July 2024)
- Anti-Money Laundering Policies Controls and Procedures Manual (March 2022) — View the table of contents
- AML Webinar (December 2023) available here, which accompanies the AML Manual. It explains the latest legal AML reporting position for accountancy firms and includes a quiz. Upon completion you receive a CPD certificate for attendance in your inbox.
- Letters of engagement and similar templates—Please visit our website here where immediate downloads are available in Word format. A bulk discount is available for orders of five or more items bought together.
ISQM TOOLKIT, or if you prefer to chat through the different audit risks and potential appropriate responses presented by this new standard. We typically tailor ISQM training and brainstorming sessions to suit your firm’s unique requirements. Please contact John McCarthy FCA by email at john@jmcc.ie.
