MONEY LAUNDERING (PROHIBITION) ACT, 2004

An Act criminalises money laundering and requires financial institutions to detect and report suspicious activities. It targets individuals involved in laundering proceeds of crime and banks as key gatekeepers. This prevents the financial system from being used for illegal activities.

What Is This Policy?

Nigeria's principal anti-money laundering legislation criminalising the conversion, transfer, or concealment of proceeds of crime, and imposing obligations on financial institutions to detect and report money laundering.

Who Does It Target?

Persons laundering proceeds of crime Banks and financial institutions as gatekeepers EFCC and ICPC as enforcement agencies NFIU receiving financial intelligence reports

What Does It Aim to Achieve?

Prevent the financial system from being used to launder proceeds of crime, criminalise money laundering as a standalone offence, and establish the reporting infrastructure for suspicious transactions.

Key Features

Money Laundering Offence: Criminalises all forms of money laundering including placement, layering, and integration of proceeds of crime. Financial Institution Obligations: Banks must maintain customer records, monitor transactions, and report suspicious activities. Cash Reporting: Prescribed cash transactions must be reported regardless of whether they are suspicious. EFCC Enforcement: EFCC is the primary agency for investigating and prosecuting money laundering offences.

Current Status

Rollout Stage: Active Coverage: Nationwide Beneficiaries: Financial system integrity; public revenue Funding: Federal Government

How to Access

Financial institutions must implement AML compliance programmes Report suspicious transactions within 24 hours to NFIU Conduct customer due diligence on all customers Application method: AML compliance: internal. Reports: NFIU at https://www.nfiu.gov.ng

Important Terms

Money laundering carries up to 14 years imprisonment Conviction is possible even without conviction of the predicate offence Assets derived from money laundering are forfeited to the government

Official Resources

Website: https://www.efcc.gov.ng Contact: Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) / NFIU

Legal Framework

The Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act 2004 was the primary anti-money laundering legislation until superseded by the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act 2022. It operated alongside the EFCC Act 2004, the Terrorism (Prevention) Act, and the CBN AML/CFT Regulations. The Act aligned with FATF Forty Recommendations, the GIABA mutual evaluation standards, and the UNTOC Convention on transnational organized crime.