Commenting on Nigel Farage’s comments today on money laundering laws being a “sledgehammer that misses the nut”, John Binns, a partner and financial crime specialist at BCL Solicitors, a leading white collar crime law firm, said:

“While few would argue with the intent behind money laundering laws to put a stop to financial crime, Mr Farage raises an important point about these laws. The principle behind them is that banks should block and close accounts that they suspect contain proceeds of crime. The problem is that they over-comply, blocking accounts of countless individuals and businesses. While the law protects the banks when they do this in good faith; they do not have to have good evidence. The real irony is that their reports are often ignored by law enforcement, thanks to lack of resources. The result is that banks’ customers suffer immensely, while genuine cases of financial crime go unpunished.”