Auckland-based Jin Yuan Finance Ltd was fined four million dollars for multiple breaches of money-laundering legislation after Internal Affairs identified use of immigrant staff without work permits processing off-shore money transfers together with wholesale failures to properly document customer details.
In April 2018, Internal Affairs got court orders blocking Yuan Finance and director Rex Young from carrying out financial transactions. This followed investigations stretching back to 2015. The High Court was told Yuan Finance failed to properly respond to Internal Affairs demands that record keeping and reporting of suspicious transactions be improved. Yuan Finance deliberately misled Internal Affairs, stating transactions were routed through only one bank account when in fact multiple third party accounts were also used. For the year ended June 2014, some $122.2 million was transferred using Yuan Finance’s services with ninety per cent of its income coming from international money transfers.
Action was taken under the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Act. Yuan Finance did not appear in court. It was fined for failing to carry out due diligence on its customers, failing to keep proper records and failing to report high-value suspicious transactions.
Internal Affairs v. Jin Yuan Finance Ltd – High Court (3.10.19)
19.176