UAE Central Bank Revokes Dirham Exchange License for Money Laundering

The UAE Central Bank has canceled the license of Dirham Exchange, an exchange house based in the UAE, and removed its name from the official register. This action is part of the Central Bank's ongoing efforts to crack down on instances of financial misconduct within the financial sector.

It also canceled the registration of Hawala provider RMB Commercial Brokers.

On Wednesday, the Central Bank stated that the imposition of administrative penalties followed a process of appeals, in accordance with the legal regulations regulating the prevention of money laundering, the financing of terrorism, and the support of illegal organizations.

The two companies faced sanctions as a result of investigations carried out by the Central Bank, revealing serious regulatory misconduct. This included involvement in anti-money laundering violations and collaborating to evade the Central Bank's directives, which prohibited the exchange house from conducting remittance transactions with specific countries.

“The findings showed that they had a weak compliance framework and failed to comply with their regulatory obligations and to report regulatory breaches to the CBUAE.”

In recent years, the UAE has achieved significant efforts to combat money laundering, terrorism financing, and the proliferation of weapons.