The United Arab Emirates has bolstered its regulatory and legislative framework to tackle money laundering and terrorist financing.

This is according to Minister of Economy Abdullah bin Touq, who told the Future of Finance Conference: “Money laundering is a global concern for the integrity and stability of the financial sector and has a profound impact on the economy in general. This is discouraging foreign investment and distorting international capital flows.”

He added that the threat of money laundering “inevitably spills over to the financial stability of the state and the performance of its overall economy, which results in output gaps, welfare losses and distortion in neighbouring economies.”

There are strict laws to prevent money laundering and terrorism financing in the UAE, and in recent years numerous regulations have been implemented to crack down on financial crimes, The National reports.

Earlier in 2021 the UAE set up the Executive Office of Anti-Money Laundering and Counter Terrorism Financing and in November the Ministry of Economy established an anti-money laundering department and a court was introduced in Abu Dhabi to combat money laundering and tax evasion.

“Being fully aware of the significance of confronting any practices, we have developed an integrated system of national laws and regulations related to combating money laundering and financing of terrorism,” the Minister of Economy added.

“Our system, characterised by force and deterrence and effective controls, hinders criminals from using the UAE as a safe haven for criminal practices.”

In addition, the Ministry of Economy launched an initiative this year so that over 500,000 non-financial businesses in the UAE submit data on ultimate beneficiaries as it continues to introduce new policies to combat the issue.

Within the plans, businesses had to register their real beneficiary and the required data with their regulatory body's licensing systems to attempt to avoid money laundering.