After much fanfare and debate, the Bribery Act 2010 finally
came into force on July 1 2011. Anyone who does business in the
UK is likely to have spent a lot of time over recent months
preparing for the introduction of one of the most hotly
anticipated pieces of legislation to hit the statute books in
some time; but is this really the biggest risk?
A considerable amount has been written about the Act's
likely impact and there is no doubt that it will be an
important weapon in the armoury of the Serious Fraud Office
(SFO). However, it is not the only tool available to
prosecutors in their fight against bribery and corruption; nor
is it the most ferocious. Very little has been said about the
existing body of anti-money laundering laws which already place
onerous obligations on individuals and businesses throughout
the UK.
Ignoring those laws in a...