4.14 AM Friday, 29 March 2024
  • City Fajr Shuruq Duhr Asr Magrib Isha
  • Dubai 04:56 06:10 12:26 15:53 18:37 19:52
29 March 2024

1,500 KSA laundering cases

Published
By Staff

Saudi Arabia recorded nearly 1,500 money laundering cases in 2011 involving around SR45 billion (Dh44 billion), a local newspaper reported on Tuesday.

The figure in 2011 was higher than the 1,386 money laundering cases reported in 2010 and 1,230 cases recorded in 2009, Aleqtisadiah Arabic language daily said, citing Saudi bankers at a laundering conference in Riyadh.

The bankers attributed the increase to intensified training for financial staff and the fact that banks and other financial institutions have become more aware of the laundering rules in the largest Arab economy.

The bankers, citing data by the money laundering unit at the Ministry of Interior, said the reported cases involved around SR45 billion, which they described as a large sum, accounting for more than two per cent of GDP in 2011.

According to the paper, money laundering offences in Saudi Arabia, the world’s top oil exporter, are punishable by 10 years in jail and a SR15 million fine, one of the toughest penalties in such cases in the world.