Kazakhstan’s Financial Watchdog Issues Guidelines on Reporting Suspicious Transactions

Introduction

The Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) of Kazakhstan has issued new guidelines for financial institutions and individuals to report suspicious transactions and prevent money laundering and terrorist financing.

Requirements for Reporting Suspicious Transactions

• Financial institutions must file a report with the FIU within one business day after recognizing a transaction as suspicious.
• The report must include detailed information about the transaction, including:
  • Date
  • Amount
  • Purpose of the transaction
  • Identities of all parties involved

Screening Transactions for Suspicious Indicators

• Financial institutions must screen transactions for suspicious indicators associated with money laundering and terrorist financing.
• Appropriate questions should be asked to verify the legitimacy of the transaction.
• If a customer refuses or hesitates to answer questions, this may indicate a suspicion of money laundering or terrorist financing.

Suspicious Activity Indicators

The FIU has approved a list of suspicious activity indicators associated with money laundering and terrorist financing, which includes:

• High-risk countries
• Corrupt businesses
• Individuals with political exposure

Financial institutions are required to maintain their own list of suspicious activity indicators and must be aware that transactions involving high-risk countries, corrupt businesses, or individuals with political exposure may expose them to engaging in money laundering or terrorist financing.

Threshold Transactions

Threshold transactions are those that exceed a certain amount or frequency, which is determined by the financial institution’s risk assessment. Financial institutions must report all suspicious transactions to the FIU immediately after recognizing them as suspicious and provide detailed information about the transaction, including the reason why it was considered suspicious.

Responding to Requests from the FIU

Financial institutions must respond to requests from the FIU for additional information within one business day and preserve the same report number and date that was initially filed.

Contact Information

For more information on the guidelines, financial institutions can contact the FIU at aml@afsa.kz.

Address: 8 Kunayev Street, Astana, Kazakhstan Financial Conduct Division: aml@afsa.kz