Proposed Bill Enlists Art & Antiquities Dealers in the Fight Against Money Laundering

The U.S. House of Representatives will consider a bill that adds art and antiquities dealers to the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA). Introduced last Friday by Representative Luke Messer (R-IN-6), H.R. 5886 would aid law enforcement's effort to uncover money laundering and terrorist financing schemes.

Titled the "Illicit Art and Antiquities Trafficking Prevention Act," the bill replies "yes" to the question, Shouldn't Art and Antiquities Sellers Be Subject to Anti-Money Laundering/Counter-Terrorist Financing Laws?, and it satisfies one of the six proposed recommendations to combat cultural heritage crime.

America's anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist finance laws (AML/CTF) such as the BSA generally require luxury and cash-intensive industries to satisfy recordkeeping requirements to identify and report possible criminal activity. Banks and casinos are just some of the sectors already required to file Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) with U.S. Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). Under the terms of the legislation proposed last week, art and antiquities dealers also would be included.

New European AML/CTF Legislation Includes Art Dealers and Flags Cultural Artifacts Transactions

European Parliament

Members of the European Parliament have adopted a legislative resolution endorsing a December 2017 agreement with the European Council that, for the first time, includes art dealers and auction houses in the European Union's anti-money laundering/counter-terrorist financing (AML/CTF) compliance rules.

Directive (EU) 2015/849 is the EU's primary legal weapon to combat money laundering and terrorist financing. It has been updated four times. The Directive regulates designated high-cash sectors (e.g., banks, casinos) to prevent them from being financially co-opted by organized crime groups and terrorists. The legislation approved by the Parliament on April 19 seeks to broaden the Directive by including cultural property dealers on the list of regulated sectors.