Australian real estate is the latest target of criminals for laundering money. According to the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre, as reported by The Sydney Morning Herald, these criminals are looking for real estate where they can hide the proceeds from their various crimes. Because of this, Australia was urged to look into the growing property sector to prevent it from being used by criminals for concealing ill-gotten wealth, AsiaOneWorld reports.
The Financial Action Task Force, a Paris-based anti-laundering agency, identified Australia's property division as high risk. This is the reason they urged Australian authorities to look out for different real estate agents, lawyers and accountants as they may become accessory to the crime. It was also stated in their report that the Australian estates are also being targeted by different local and foreign organized crime syndicates who are making money from illegal drugs, tax evasion and fraud. It was also noted that Singapore is believed to be one of the main quarters for these criminal funds to be laundered in Australia.
According to international corruption and money laundering expert, Professor Jason Sharman of Griffith University, in an interview with The Straits Times as cited by AsiaOneWorld, Australia's enforcement and regulatory system is "very, very weak," making it a great place for laundering money. About 35,000 real estate agents are reportedly not subjected to anti-laundering procedures unlike other sectors such as gaming and banking.
On the other hand, a spokesman for the Australian government said that the Australian property sector ensures that it is not used to keep dirty money. The federal government said that it was conducting a review to determine how to apply safety procedures to the real estate sector.
