Overview

One of the effects of the UK's new Bribery Act was to alert UK companies and individuals to offences within its jurisdiction. However, what has been less highlighted is the risk that acts and omissions that are a crime elsewhere in the world but do not constitute a bribery offence under UK law (either because the entities involved had no UK presence or because the event did not occur in the UK) may still come to bite under the UK anti-money laundering legislation.

The application of the Bribery Act to companies listed in the UK but with no other UK presence, and without any direct involvement to the bribery complained of, remains unclear. The latest Ministry of Justice guidance that such companies would not be caught is cast into doubt by recent statements by the Serious Fraud Office.

This briefing uses the recent M.W. Kellogg Ltd case to highlight the risk of committing a separate money laundering offence under the UK Proceeds of Crime Act 2002. Click 'View Briefing' to read more.