In plain English
When monitoring, a customer's behavior or other information gives reasonable grounds to suspect money laundering, terrorist financing or related crime, institutions are required to report to the financial intelligence unit (FIU). In some jurisdictions the same report is called a suspicious activity report (SAR). In the UAE, reports go to the UAE Financial Intelligence Unit.
Reports must usually be made promptly, must be of good quality, and must never be disclosed to the customer, because tipping off can be an offense. The FIU uses reports to build intelligence and may share them with law enforcement.
Why it matters to a board
Reporting is the most direct way an institution contributes to the fight against financial crime, and failing to report, or reporting late, can carry serious penalties. Boards should see reporting volumes, timeliness and quality indicators.
Common mistakes
- Filing late.
- Defensive reporting of everything, which buries real intelligence.
- Thin narratives that give the FIU nothing to act on.
- Tipping off the customer.
What the standards and regulators say
- FATF Recommendations: international standards on combating money laundering and the financing of terrorism and proliferation
- Central Bank of the UAE: Guidance for Licensed Financial Institutions on Suspicious Transaction Reporting
- UAE: Federal Decree-Law No. 10 of 2025 on anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism and proliferation, and its executive regulations (Cabinet Resolution No. 134 of 2025)