- Chief Compliance Officer and VP of Legal Affairs, Arrow Electronics
By 
Neil Hodge2023-11-22T16:08:00
U.K. companies might be wary of informing regulators they have potentially violated sanctions against Russia over fears they could be publicly criticized for even minor breaches.
Legal and compliance experts assumed minor infractions of the rules would not likely be punishable as companies prepared to conduct more detailed background checks.
However, the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation’s (OFSI) decision in August to call out payments firm Wise Payments for failing to prevent a designated customer from withdrawing just 250 pounds (U.S. $312) from a cash machine has led some experts to raise questions about the U.K.’s regulatory approach.
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The U.K. government is set to establish a new agency to enforce trade sanctions and provide compliance guidance to businesses regarding the country’s sanctions regimes.
More than 150 new designations implemented by the Office of Foreign Assets Control continue U.S. efforts to crack down on entities and individuals supporting Russia from outside the country.
Christian Nauvel, deputy chief counsel for corporate enforcement in the Department of Justice’s National Security Division, said the agency’s focus on national security is “top of mind at the highest levels” and that enforcement numbers are set to increase.
The U.K. has issued 56 new sanctions against entities and individuals involved with Russia’s war effort, including several private mercenary groups operating in Africa that are connected to the Kremlin.
Global sanctions rules are increasing rapidly, as are tools to detect and punish those who break them. In response, the U.K. government is creating a new Office of Trade Sanctions Implementation to investigate and penalize those who break sanctions rules.
Five individuals and seven entities in Iran, China, and Hong Kong have been targeted for U.S. sanctions by the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control for helping to obtain components used in Iran’s missles and drones.
