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Partners want to beat money launderers

By Wang Hongyi (China Daily)
Updated: 2009-05-14 09:23

SHANGHAI: While constructing the city's international financial center, Shanghai also wants to build up its army of anti-money laundering experts.

And an influx of professionals will be hitting the books soon, following a partnership between Shanghai-based Fudan University and the Association of Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialists (ACAMS), a non-government organization that trains and certifies professionals in the rapidly expanding anti-money laundering field.

"Money laundering has been proved to be an emerging challenge for the whole world. Despite some achievements it has made in the past years, the country lagged behind Western countries in anti-money laundering experience and legislation," said Shi Lei, an economics professor at Fudan University. "The cooperation is part of the country's efforts to strengthen anti-money laundering checks and monitor securities and insurance companies to safeguard financial security."

"Meanwhile, it can help Shanghai become an international financial center by providing more specialized talents," he said.

Through the partnership, the university and the association will work together to establish a mechanism to combat illegal international flows of money. In addition, anti-money laundering courses will be taught across the country. The first program, a two-month certification training course will begin this year.

Tang Zhuchang, deputy director of China Anti-Money Laundering Monitoring and Analysis Center, said China urgently needs more such professionals.

"China's anti-money laundering efforts were in the initial stage and needed further improvement. The country especially lacked the professional training needed to prevent money laundering," said Tang, who is part of the country's first anti-money laundering study center - founded by Fudan University in 2006.

China had, in 2007, about 190,000 people working in the anti-money laundering field within the country's banking, insurance and security industry. However, only 7.5 percent of those did the work on a full-time basis, according the People's Bank of China in its China Anti-Money Laundering report.

"It's clear that there is a huge demand for the new breeds of professionals as well as the improvement of the existing staff," Shi said.

He added that Fudan University is considering launching degree and postgraduate programs in anti-money laundering in the near future.