Manila shuts down 2 money agents

Philippine central bank voids licence of 2 outfits after citing them for 'money laundering'

Last updated: November 05, 2018 | 15:02

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MANILA: The Philippines' central monetary authority on Tuesday has scrapped the registration of two remittance centres due to alleged money-laundering activities.

The two remittance centres — Edzen Enterprises and World Wide Money Changer — were cited for violating the Anti-Money Laundering Act, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas announced on its website on Tuesday.

In a statement the BSP's Monetar Board named Edzen Enterprises and World Wide Money Changer being the sole proprietorships owned by Zenaida Artuz and Elliot Artuz, respectively.

The central bank registered the two outfits as “remittance agent/foreign exchange dealer/money changer”.

Violations

“The cancellation was due to significant violations of their Deeds of Undertaking, specifically on the commitment to strictly comply with Republic Act No. 9160, as amended, and its Revised Implementing Rules and Regulations,” the BSP said.

The central bank also stated said the two businesses violated the minimum procedures on the sale and purchase of foreign currencies. Moreover, the two also flouted the requirements for transactions involving large-value payouts.

BSP regulates banking operations in the country and has regulatory powers over non-bank financial institutions with quasi-banking functions.

It also give policy directions in the areas of money, banking and credit.

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