financial institutions. this was extended to include non - financial institutions between 2003 and 2010, to more effectively address money laundering risks that fall outside of the financial sector. the malaysian aml / cft regime is characterised by four pillars : a comprehensive legal framework, implementation of preventive measures, effective enforcement of laws and regulations and close cooperation between agencies, both domestically and internationally. in 2015, the third report on malaysia ’ s aml / cft framework was published by the financial action task force ( or the fatf ), arising from an independent assessment of malaysia ’ s compliance with the international standards on combating money laundering and the financing of terrorism and proliferation. the report acknowledged malaysia ’ s ‘ high degree ’ of technical compliance and a ‘ substantial to moderate ’ level of effectiveness in the implementation of international standards. as a result, malaysia was accorded full fatf membership status in 2016, which not only demonstrates a strong commitment to combat money laundering and financing of terrorism, but also reflects a safe business environment in malaysia. 1 / 3 bis central bankers'speeches importantly, this recognition enables malaysia to better participate in the international financial system without qualifications and sanctions, enabling our business and economy to transact and exchange freely with the rest of the world. such a recognition is priceless for an open and trading economy like ours. maintaining the integrity of the financial system and safeguarding legitimate business activities is thus paramount in ensuring that this recognition is preserved and that we have a thriving and conducive business environment. preventing and combating financial crime is a shared responsibility of all stakeholders. hence, it is imperative that all dnfbp sectors including legal professionals play an important complementary role to financial institutions in safeguarding this by preventing the proceeds from unlawful activities and funding of terrorism from penetrating into our financial system, while facilitating investigations and prosecution of these financial crimes. the legal fraternity also plays a crucial role in the public sphere as an instrumental component in the administration of justice as well as in upholding the rule of law. in many financial transactions or exchanges, the legal fraternity also acts as a gatekeeper, or intermediary arising from their position of trust. in doing so, the legal professionals are thus well positioned to detect or identify and prevent the conduct of illegal activities, which involve such financial transactions that the profession is mediating. the resultant impact of a lawyer ’ s inappropriate conduct when dealing with a client, if left unchecked, may pose reputational risks and loss of confidence, not only to

' speeches elevating our understanding and subsequent implementation of your aml / cft reporting obligations, or preventive measures, there should also be efforts to : 1. keep ourselves abreast with recent and emerging trends of ml / tf ; 2. abide by all ethical obligations and applicable professional rules ; and also 3. properly distinguish between legitimate client requests and transactions or structures that may be intended for criminal activities or to frustrate law enforcement. today ’ s conference seeks to address the concerns raised by legal professionals that are often cited as a hurdle or stumbling block to effectively implement aml / cft obligations. themed, “ building aml / cft compliance effectiveness : risks and challenges ”, the conference will have : 1. discussions on the application of risk - based approach ; 2. a discussion on aml / cft compliance vis - a - vis the legal professional privilege and professional secrecy ; 3. sharing of experience or best practices by industry players ; and 4. finally, sharing by law enforcement agencies on ml and tf cases involving abuse of lawyers and other gatekeepers, to facilitate ml and tf related crimes or activities. before i end, i wish to highlight two key updates : 1. first, bank negara malaysia is in the midst of finalizing revision to sector 5 policy document ( or the aml / cft guidelines issued pursuant to the amla ) and will be issuing the exposure draft in september. all reporting institutions are invited to provide comments and views on the draft which may be organized through relevant licencing authorities, self - regulatory bodies, industry associations or directly to bank negara malaysia ; and 2. second, i would also like to take this opportunity to remind all reporting institutions, that bank negara malaysia is increasing its supervisory and enforcement of aml / cft compliance, in which we intend to pursue more deterrent action including taking appropriate enforcement actions under the amla, for any identified non - compliances, beginning 2020. as such we urge all reporting institutions present today to engage and discourse any compliance issues with the wide ranging of experts that we have lined up for this conference. with that, i wish everyone a fruitful discussion ahead and selamat menyambut hari kemerdekaan. 3 / 3 bis central bankers'speeches