Netherlands Cracks Down on Money Laundering: Stricter Definitions and Wide-Ranging Predicate Offences
Overview
Amsterdam, Netherlands – Money laundering, the act of disguising the proceeds of illegal activities as legitimate funds, is a serious concern for law enforcement agencies worldwide. In the Netherlands, this economic crime has been a criminal offence in its own right since December 2001. This article discusses how the Netherlands combats money laundering with stricter definitions and an extensive range of predicate offences.
What is Money Laundering?
Money laundering refers to activities that make illegally-gained funds appear legitimate. According to the Dutch Criminal Code (Article 420bis), Money laundering in the Netherlands is defined as “providing apparently lawful origins for an increase in assets that has been kept from the legal authorities.”
All-Crimes Approach
The Netherlands employs an “all-crimes approach” to money laundering. This approach means that any criminal activity that generates illegally acquired funds can be a predicate offence for money laundering. Below are some examples of predicate offences.
Predicate Offences
European Union Directive
The European Union’s recent directive on combating money laundering came into effect on 3 December 2020. It standardizes the approach to money laundering across all EU member states and mandates that the following 22 criminal activities be defined as predicate offences for money laundering:
- Cybercrime
- Fraud
- Corruption and bribery
- Organized crime-related offences
- Sexual exploitation
- Drug trafficking
- Human trafficking
- Embezzlement
- Counterfeiting
- Piracy and copyright infringement
- Fraud related to financial instruments
- Money counterfeiting
- Forgery
- Criminal damage
- Robbery
- Fraud related to motor vehicles
- Fraud related to intellectual property
- Fraud related to documents and computer systems
- Embezzlement of social security funds
- Fraud affecting the financial interest of the European Communities
- Terrorist financing
- Insider trading and market manipulation
Conclusion
Stricter definitions and wide-ranging predicate offences in the Netherlands are part of the country’s continuous efforts to tackle money laundering more effectively. Combining these measures with international cooperation and robust enforcement by law enforcement agencies and financial institutions is crucial to successful combating of money laundering.