Ribadu Wants Culprits of Money Laundering Punished

CBN plans regulatory framework for virtual currencies
By James Emejo in Abuja

The former Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, on Wednesday urged the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari to strengthen the anti-graft agencies to recover ‘dirty money’ and punish perpetrators of financial crimes.
He said virtually all the problems which could be associated with Nigeria stemmed from money laundering.
Ribadu said all monies from criminal activities must be identified, adding that:
“Nothing destroys like allowing criminality to thrive.”
According to him, terrorism and money laundering are largely responsible for the country’s underdevelopment.
The former EFCC boss further stressed the need to follow and identify money movements as “even clean money can be used to finance terrorism.”
Speaking in Abuja at the opening the second Anti-Money Laundering/Combating Financial Terrorism Stakeholders’ Consultative Workshop with the theme: ‘Money Laundering/Terrorism Financing (ML/TF) Risk from Virtual Currency and Non-Profit Organisations’, he called on Buhari to take institutions like the EFCC seriously.
He said to effectively fight money laundering and terrorism financing, it was important to strengthen the enforcement regime.
Ribadu recalled that within the first six months of his tenure at the EFCC, over N200 billion was recovered from the financial industry while $75 million was returned to victims of the advanced fee fraud otherwise known as ‘419’.
He said the eventual reforms particularly, the integration of the Nigerian financial system to the global market, started with the tremendous effort of the EFCC during his tenure as prior to that time, Nigerians could could do business with the MasterCard while the international community was conscious of the country.
According to him, “The world started taking us seriously,” following the convincing commitment of the EFCC to fight financial crimes.
He said the trend was almost reversed when his tenure was abruptly cut short in 2007.
Ribadu was thereafter given an award by the organisers of the programme for his ‘Outstanding Achievements’ in the anti-corruption campaign in the country.
Nevertheless, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Deputy Governor, Financial Systems Stability, Dr. Okwu Nnanna, said the forum was apt given that the use of virtual currencies for payment of transactions and speculative investments is rapidly expanding in the world economy.
As a result, he said regulators around the world were grappling with how best to regulate such currencies for the protection of the consumers and investors in order to maintain the stability and safety of the financial system.
Represented at the occasion by CBN Deputy Director, Financial Policy and Regulation Department, Mr. Obot Akpan, Nnanna said the major focus of public debate regarding regulation of virtual currency is the protection of consumers.
He said the forum, which was organised by the Association of Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialists (ACAMS) in partnership with the Committee of Chief Compliance Officers of Banks in Nigeria (CCCoBIN) and DataPro Limited was expected to assist in laying a solid foundation for the much needed regulatory climate on the operations of virtual currency in the country.
He said:”I wish to note that virtual currencies present a wide range of issues and challenges that require financial authorities to consider and the challenges posed are unique and call for urgent regulatory responses.”