AWARDS
In terms of legislation , one thing that I ’ m most proud of is drafting the first proposal for what became the Bank Secrecy Act Advisory Group ( BSAAG ). In 1990 , we wrote that there should be an organization run by the U . S . Department of the Treasury or FinCEN comprised of members of the private and public sectors working together . I am proud to say that the BSAAG still exists today because it ’ s all about partnership .
AT : What is so important about public-private partnerships ? Do you think we ’ ve progressed ? Do you think we ’ ve improved public-private partnerships since you started ?
JB : When I was at the ABA , we knew public-private partnerships were important . For instance , I would go to a banking school in Norman , Oklahoma , and appear on panels with Internal Revenue Service agents to talk and train the bankers together . Bankers saw the value of the information to LE and the challenges of compliance from our perspective . The AML community has always been supportive of our colleagues in the public sector . But as I said before , we can be critical of something ― either the process or a proposal ― but that doesn ’ t mean we don ’ t have the same goals . Everyone knows how important it is to get information into the hands of LE as quickly as possible so they can detect and prosecute . I think we ’ ve definitively improved . We started in a good place , but it ’ s even better now because LE wants to be part of the dialogue and discussion , whether it ’ s an ACAMS assembly or another event . During my time at ACAMS , we made sure that at least one of the issues of ACAMS Today would be dedicated to our LE partners . That was always important , both as a message and for content .
AT : In your opinion , what regulatory action would be most beneficial for the AFC industry ?
JB : We ’ re all aware of the Anti- Money Laundering Act of 2020 , which was signed into law in January
2021 , and there are a series of provisions that still aren ’ t finalized that would really be both innovative and essential . For example , one is regulator training . Our examiners are trained , but they sometimes get trained in a way that could be argued is antithetical to AML because it focuses more on the process than the mission . It ’ s not necessarily their fault that they may focus more on a late filing or a missed filing versus the institution ’ s ability to detect and report activity but that is an area that needs to be better addressed . Hopefully , some of the new AML provisions will eventually include investment advisors , the real estate industry , those who sell and purchase antiquities and the art market . When I think back to when the USA PATRIOT Act passed , we advocated that anybody with a financial footprint should be covered under the Bank Secrecy Act ( BSA ). There should be no exceptions . Hopefully , that will happen .
Also , I would like to mention that reporting could be more efficient . As we know , a large portion of data
Pictured left to right are Markus Schulz , John J . Byrne and Mariah Gause .
48 acamstoday . org