Compliance Acronyms

4MLD/4AMLD/AMLD4

The EU's Fourth Money Laundering Directive.

5MLD/5AMLD/AMLD5

The EU's Fifth Money Laundering Directive (2018) aimed to implement amendments to the EU Commission’s Action Plan of 2016 that tackles the use of the financial system for funding criminal and terrorist activities as well as large-scale obfuscation of funds.

6MLD/6AMLD/AMLD6

The EU's Sixth Money Laundering Directive. An EU directive that focuses on tackling crimes enabled by money laundering (including trafficking, bribery, etc).

AIFMD

Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive (AIFMD) provides a regulatory framework for those who manage alternative investment funds, such as hedge funds, private equity firms and investment trusts.

AML

Anti-Money laundering refers to the policies, laws, and regulations to implement in order to prevent financial crimes. See 4MLD/5MLD/6MLD & MLRO

AMLID

The Anti-Money Laundering International Database (AMLID) is a secure, multilingual database of anti-money laundering laws and regulations, also containing information on national contacts and authorities. AMLID is an important reference tool for law enforcement officers involved in cross-jurisdictional work and is published by IMOLIN (See International Money Laundering Network).

BSA

The Bank Secrecy Act (primary US anti-money laundering law, amended by the USA Patriot Act in 2001). Among other measures, it imposes money laundering controls on financial institutions and many other businesses, including the requirement to report and to keep records of various financial transactions.

BOOM

Beneficial owner, officer or manager in the accounting sector. All of these must be approved by their regulatory body, including passing a basic DBS check.

CCO

Chief Compliance Officer. However, more commonly the CCO is a Chief Commercial Officer. 

CDD

Customer Due Diligence is the identification, verification and Know Your Customer process to adequately assess the risk a customer poses in respect of an organisation's financial crime exposure. See KYC.

CFT

Combatting the financing of terrorism (also known as CTF).

CGO

Chief Governance Officer. This role tends to cover more than compliance. It may carry responsibility for areas including corporate strategy, CSR, ethics, investor relations, public affairs and risk management.

CGR

Corporate Governance Risk or Compliance, Governance and risk.

CIFAS

Credit Industry Fraud Avoidance System. The fraud prevention service in the United Kingdom. Currently, there are more than 250 members of CIFAS in the financial sector and other industries.

CIRT

A CIRT (computer/cyber incident response team) deals with the impact of IT security breaches.

CISO

Chief Information Security Officer.

CSR

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is a form of self-regulation where businesses pursue societal goals. This includes charitable activities or behaving in an ethical manner.
See also ESG.

CTF

Counter-terrorist financing (also known as CFT).

DBS

The UK disclosure and barring service is a government body that helps to prevent unsuitable people from working with vulnerable groups, including children.

DCM

Designated contract market.

DPO

EDD

Enhanced Due Diligence is additional, 'enhanced' customer due diligence measures which need to be applied by businesses and organisations in higher-risk situations, as per regulations 33-35 of the Money Laundering Regulations.

EDI

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion.

EHS

Environment, Health and Safety.

ELD

Employee Learning & Development.

ERM

Enterprise risk management (ERM) describes the methods used to manage business risks and seize opportunities.

ESG

Environmental, Social, and Corporate Governance (ESG) relate to the sustainability and the societal impact of investing in a business. See also CSR.

FATF

The Financial Action Task Force is an intergovernmental body that is responsible for developing and promoting anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing standards across the world.

FCA

The Financial Conduct Authority has a number of statutory objectives. This includes enhancing and protecting the UK financial system's integrity, ensuring it isn't being utilised for a purpose that is associated with any financial crime.

FIT

Fit and Proper Test (FIT) refers to an employee who is regarded as suitable to hold a particular position. FIT can also refer to a person who is considered honest and trustworthy.

FIU

The Financial Intelligence Unit is a central national agency that is responsible for getting, evaluating and transmitting disclosures regarding suspicious transactions to the relevant, competent authorities. In the UK, this is the NCA.

FSMA

The UK Financial Services and Markets Act (2000) created the Financial Services Authority (FSA) as a regulator for insurance, investment and banking, and the Financial Ombudsman Service to resolve disputes as a free alternative to the courts. It also created the Prudential Regulation Authority to supervise banks, building societies, credit unions, insurers and major investment firms.

GESI

Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) relates to the two areas. Gender equality involves ensuring that opportunities are available equally to individuals regardless of gender. Social inclusion has a similar aim for those in traditionally disadvantaged groups, for example, those from low-income backgrounds.

GFC

Global Financial Crisis of 2008.

HCM

Human Capital Management

HMRC

Her Majesty's Revenue & Customs (HMRC) is the supervisory authority for money service businesses not supervised by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), high-value dealers, trust or company service providers not supervised by the FCA or a professional body.

HMT

Her Majesty's Treasury is the UK government's economic and finance ministry, maintaining control over public spending, setting the direction of the UK's economic policy and working to achieve strong and sustainable economic growth.

HSEQ

Health, Safety, Environment and Quality.

IOSH

The IOSH is the Chartered body and membership organisation for safety and health professionals.

JMLIT

The Joint Money Laundering Intelligence Taskforce (JMLIT) is a partnership between law enforcement and the financial sector to exchange and analyse information relating to money laundering and wider economic threats.

JMLSG

The Joint Money Laundering Steering Group (JMLSG) produces helpful guidance for the financial services industry on interpreting the MLR and setting out good practice in countering money laundering.

KYC

Know Your Customer - ie having sufficient information as to the reasoning why a customer behaves in a certain way.

KYCC

Know Your Customer’s Customers.

KYCB

Know Your Correspondent Bank.

KYE

Know Your Employee.

MAR

The Market Abuse Regulation (MAR) replaced the previous Market Abuse Directive and established a strengthened and expanded civil market abuse regime across the EU. MAR extended the market abuse regime so that it applies to more venues, more instruments, and more behaviours.

MLRO

A Money Laundering Reporting Officer is responsible for making certain that measures for combating money laundering within the business are effective. Under the Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA), an MLRO is also typically the nominated officer.

NCA

The National Crime Agency is an organisation that leads the United Kingdom's fight against organised and serious crime. It replaced the Serious Organised Crime Agency in October 2013.

OFAC

The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the US Department of the Treasury administers and enforces economic and trade sanctions based on US foreign policy and national security goals.

OFSI

The Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) helps to ensure that financial sanctions are properly understood, implemented and enforced in the United Kingdom. OFSI is part of HM Treasury.

OHS

Occupational health and safety (also OSH)

OPBAS

The Office for Professional Body Anti-Money Laundering Supervision (OPBAS) is a regulator set up by the UK government to strengthen the UK's anti-money laundering (AML) supervisory regime and ensure the professional body AML supervisors provide consistently high standards of AML supervision.

PEP

In financial regulation, a Politically Exposed Person (PEP) is one who has been entrusted with a prominent public function. A PEP generally presents a higher risk for potential involvement in bribery and corruption by virtue of their position and the influence that they may hold.

RSPO

Roundtable on sustainable palm oil.

QHSE

Quality, Health, Safety and Environment.

QMS

Quality Management System.

RIDDOR

The Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations were enacted in 1995.

SAR

Suspicious Activity Reports are made to the NCA about suspicions of terrorist financing or money laundering. 

SEF

Swap execution facility.

SHEQ

Safety, Health, Environment and Quality.

SQE

Safety, quality and environment.

STR

Suspicious Transaction Report (STR) is a mandatory requirement that is placed on all parts of the trading chain in the financial industry. The purpose is to inform the FCA of any suspicious, or potentially abusive, behaviour that one observes.

UBO

An Ultimate Beneficial Owner is a person or entity that is the ultimate beneficiary of a company. Certain financial and other organisations, including banks, currency exchange offices and insurers, are subject to mandatory disclosure of the UBO if doing business with any party.

UWO

An Unexplained Wealth Order (UWO) is a type of court order issued by a British court to compel the target to reveal the sources of their unexplained wealth.