The Legal Services Board would be the best candidate to take on a new streamlined supervisory regime against money laundering and terrorism financing - according to the super-regulator itself. 

It was responding to a consultation on the AML supervisory regime by HM Treasury. In the consultation, the Treasury sought views on four options, including consolidating 22 existing regulators into one for the accountancy sector and one for the legal sector. 

In its response, the LSB notes the importance of a 'holistic' approach which makes full use of existing regulators' expertise. Thus the LSB 'favours an approach that complements the existing framework for the regulation of legal services by bringing responsibility for AML supervision for legal services within the Legal Services Board's existing oversight responsibilities'. 

Claiming that the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Bill, currently before parliament, 'will place an explicit responsibility on the LSB', the response states: 'In light of this, the government would be acting entirely consistently with its broader economic crime policy if it were to bring AML supervision for legal services within the auspices of the LSB.' 

On another of the Treasury's options, strengthening the existing Office for Professional Body Anti-Money Laundering Supervision (OPBAS), the LSB states that, while it supports OPBAS and the role it plays, 'there is an alternative option for PBS supervision in the transfer of those responsibilities to the LSB.' 

Meanwhile, the Treasury's final proposals, to create a single professional services supervisor or a single overall supervisor, would miss the opportunity 'to make full use' of the expertise of existing regulators, including the LSB, the response states. 

Interested parties had until 30 September to respond to the Treasury proposals. 

 

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