Why Report to the MLRO?

Why Report to the MLRO

You must report your suspicions to the MLRO because:

• decisions as to whether privilege applies are to be made solely by the MLRO; and

• even where the organisation can continue to act for the client on the current matter, it may be prevented from acting on future transactions and the MLRO will keep a record of such occasions

The importance of reporting

It should be noted that a disclosure to a partner other than the organisation’s MLRO will not protect the individual from prosecution unless a disclosure is then made to the NCA.

If an individual wishes to report a suspicion but the relevant partner does not, the individual should nevertheless report the suspicion to the organisation’s MLRO.

If the MLRO is absent

If the MLRO and the Deputy MLRO are for any reason absent from the office at the time a report needs to be made, then it should be referred to the individual in charge of the matter, who will determine if a report should be sent directly to the NCA.

The MLRO’s decisions

The decisions of the organisation’s MLRO on matters pertaining to money laundering are his/her sole responsibility and are not subject to the agreement of anyone else at the organisation.
The MLRO will not necessarily keep others informed of his/her decisions regarding money laundering, in particular as to whether he/she has or has not made a report to the NCA.

The next topic has a list of useful links, you will then progress on to the Final Assessment where we will test what you have learned.