| On New Year’s Day, Congress overrode President Trump’s veto of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for the 2021 fiscal year, turning the bill into law without requiring the president’s signature. The NDAA includes the Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2020 (AMLA), the first major reform of the 50-year-old United States anti-money laundering (AML) framework since the 2001 USA PATRIOT Act was enacted after 9/11.
The AMLA is designed to modernize AML and counter-financing of terrorism (CFT) laws, improve coordination among government and industry stakeholders, and emphasize the importance of risk-based AML/CFT programs. The updates are numerous, and include enhanced whistleblower protections, a broadened purpose for the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA), new penalties for certain BSA violations, and the addition of two new committees to the BSA Advisory Group. Read our client alert. |
