UAE to establish federal prosecution entities specialised in economic crimes, money laundering

The Federal Judicial Council, chaired by Abdullah Sultan Bin Awad Al Nuaimi, Chairman of the Council, has approved the UAE Attorney General's proposal to establish federal prosecution entities specialised in economic crimes and money laundering.

The step aims to develop the UAE's judicial system to keep pace with global economic shifts and introduce specialised judicial entities, further boosting the UAE's financial stability and economic growth.

The creation of prosecution offices specialised in economic crimes and money laundering is a part of the transformative projects (government accelerators) on which the Ministry of Justice is currently working in coordination with the Federal Judicial Council to improve the professional and legal performance in the UAE.

The establishment of these entities also represents a first step towards investigating and cracking down on economic crimes and money laundering, including those that fall on economic interests such as corporate crimes, bankruptcy, regulation of competition, financial markets, intellectual property and trademarks, or that violate the UAE's financial rights, such as customs evasion crimes.

The project’s significance lies in its role in protecting the national economy and reducing the impact of economic and financial crimes on the economy and society, as well as growing the UAE's economy and enhancing its competitiveness as a global financial and business hub for investment and improving the efficiency and quality of criminal investigations.

The UAE is intensifying its relentless efforts to  combat economic crimes and money laundering, taking many crucial steps to strengthen the legislative and legal structure towards reaching this goal, and to protect the national economy, further enhancing the confidence of international investors in the UAE’s business environment and encouraging them to bring their businesses to the UAE.

This project aligns with the ‘We the UAE 2031’ Vision, specifically the ‘Forward Economy’ pillar, which seeks to establish the world's top hub for the new economy, and the ‘Forward Ecosystem’ pillar, which involves positioning the UAE as the safest and most secure country in the world and preserving human rights through an advanced legislative and judicial system.

Last week, the Central Bank of the UAE and the Dubai Police signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to promote cooperation coordination and partnership in the field of information exchange related to financial crimes to achieve strategic common goals.

The MoU was signed by Khaled Mohamed Balama, Governor of the Central Bank of the UAE, Chairman of the National Committee for Combating Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism and Illegal Organisations, and Major General Abdullah Khalifa Al Marri, Commander in Chief of Dubai Police.

The MoU includes enhancing cooperation and coordination in various areas, including facilitating information exchange related to financial crimes and suspicious cases through the establishment of an effective communication mechanism, joint efforts to detecting complex money laundering plans, conducting follow-up and monitoring suspicious financial activities.

In addition, it comprises conducting joint inspections, running awareness campaigns on emerging patterns of financial crimes, and cooperation in training and technical support for both parties.

WAM