Australia’s financial crimes regulator, AUSTRAC, has issued an infringement notice of A$187,800 to Revolut Payments Australia Pty Ltd for late reporting of international transfers, it was announced on Tuesday.
Revolut Australia Fined A$187,800 by AUSTRAC For Late Reporting
The penalty follows Revolut’s self-disclosure that it had failed to submit international funds transfer instructions within the timeframes required under the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter Terrorism Financing (AML/CTF) Act. The company has since paid the notice in full.
AUSTRAC Chief Executive Brendan Thomas said Revolut co-operated with the regulator and took steps to remedy the issue.
“Revolut has been co-operative with AUSTRAC and paid the infringement notice in full. These are the real-life consequences of failures to report and it’s why failures to report need to have regulatory consequences, even where reporting entities detect, disclose and report the failures,” he said.
Thomas warned that remittance services are a particular target for money launderers.
“Remittance services are attractive to money launderers and other types of criminals because they can move funds cheaply and quickly across borders. We take late reporting seriously because timely reports are critical to help us detect and disrupt financial crime – to strike while the iron is hot.”
AUSTRAC has identified payment platforms and remitters as a high and consistent money-laundering risk in its national risk assessment.
The regulator said reporting obligations are critical to providing law enforcement with intelligence on criminal activity, including child exploitation payments.
AUSTRAC stressed that timely reporting allows suspicious activity to be flagged quickly, supporting investigations.
