Idola Blogs

Idola Infotech, LLC. (http://www.idolainfotech.com), a leading provider of risk and compliance services to global financial institutions, announced today that Salvatore Cangialosi of The Josefa Group will serve as a consultant to Idola focused on strategy and business development initiatives. In this new role, Cangialosi is tasked with developing the vision and business strategy to further Idola’s industry leadership position and establish a framework for significant ongoing growth. He brings extensive experience in identifying and developing new markets through the application of leading-edge solutions to major business problems and opportunities.

“We enthusiastically welcome Salvatore Cangialosi to our team as Senior Strategic Advisor,” said Mahesh Viswanathan, founder and Managing Partner of Idola Infotech. “Sal has proven himself as a visionary in anticipating market needs, developing cutting-edge products and services that defined industry standards. We believe that in this new role he will be instrumental in helping Idola develop strategic relationships, identify new opportunities and further establish its position as a leader in providing products and services to the financial sector.”

via Idola Infotech Appoints Salvatore Cangialosi of The Josefa Group as Senior Strategic… | Reuters .

Comptroller of the Currency John C. Dugan stated, “As a parent, one area of financial literacy that is especially important to me is that our children learn how to make the right financial choices before they leave home.  These school-based bank programs are productive collaborations between banks and schools that share a mutual interest in providing financial education to students eager to learn.”

The OCC encourages bank participation in financial literacy initiatives such as school-based bank savings programs.  Students involved in these programs receive “hands-on” learning, while banks gain added visibility in the communities they serve.

This Insights report explains how the various school-based bank savings programs operate and describes the potential risks and benefits, including positive consideration under the Community Reinvestment Act, that banks participating in these programs may receive.

via OCC News: School-Based Bank Savings Programs: Bringing Financial Education to Students.

The Canadian Government will provide an additional aid worth 330,000 USD for an on-going project to fight money laundering run by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in Vietnam.

An agreement to this effect was signed by Canadian Deputy Foreign Minister Leonard Edwards and UNODC Representative to Vietnam Narumi Yamada in Hanoi on April 17.

The sum has brought the total aid granted by Canada to the 1.03 million USD project to over 700,000 USD.

This move begins a new stage of the Canada-Vietnam cooperation in preventing financial flows from terrorist and criminal groups, said the Canadian Deputy FM at the signing ceremony.

According to Sen. Lieu. Gen. Le The Tiem, Deputy Minister of Public Security of Vietnam, the government has exerted efforts to fight crimes, particularly those involved in money laundering, adding a committee has been set up and a national strategy on the issue is being drafted.

The three-year project, beginning in July 2007, aims to help increase authorised agencies’ capacity in investigating and prosecuting money laundering crimes, and intensify information exchange and international cooperation.

In the first stage, the project with funding of more than 600,000 USD from the United Kingdom and Canada, helped train more than 500 law enforcement and judicial workers and completed a draft plan of action against money laundering to submit to the Government for approval.

According to the project’s coordinator Hon Chan, from now to 2010, the project will help train trainers in localities who in future will directly teach workers, thus increase the effectiveness of the project.

According to UNODC, money laundering crime has become a global issue having impacts on all countries over the world. Vietnam, with booming trade and investment activities, is in need of effective measures to cope with this crime.

via Canada finances anti-money laundering project in Vietnam.

KUALA LUMPUR, April 16 (Bernama) — Efforts to strengthen the anti-money laundering and the combating of the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) regime needs to be intensified to maintain financial stability, according to Bank Negara Malaysia.

Its deputy governor Datuk Zamani Abdul Ghani said robust AML/CFT regimes could benefit individual countries as enhanced financial sector integrity and stability facilitated their integration into the global financial system.

“They will also contribute to more transparent governance and effective fiscal administration,” he said in his keynote address at the International Financial Crime and Terrorism Financing Conference 2009 here today.

Zamani said the lack of AML/CFT regime could contribute to undermine the soundness and stability of financial institutions and systems, discourage foreign investment, and distort international capital flows.

“The global financial crisis amplifies such risks,” he said.

via BERNAMA – Bank Negara: Need To Strengthen Anti-money Laundering Efforts.

Fiserv, Inc. NASDAQ: FISV, the leading global provider of financial services technology solutions, today announced that it was ranked as the top-selling provider of global anti-money laundering AML solutions by IBS Publishing. IBS determined the ranking by analyzing the AML market for the number of new name wins achieved in 2008. Fiserv topped the chart with 117 new name wins.

via Fiserv Ranked #1 in Anti-Money Laundering System Sales for Second Consecutive Year | SYS-CON CANADA.

WASHINGTON, April 21 (Reuters) – Doha Bank’s DOBK.QA New York branch has agreed to pay $5 million to settle charges by U.S. regulators that it did not adequately monitor suspicious activities related to fund transfers and other draft services, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency said on Tuesday.

The OCC and the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network said the Doha Bank branch did not have adequate controls in place to manage the risk of money laundering and other suspicious activity.

“It is critically important that institutions have effective systems in place to identify and report suspicious transactions in a timely manner, especially with regard to higher-risk products and services,” Comptroller John Dugan said.

via Doha Bank branch to pay $5 mln to settle US charges | Industries | Financial Services & Real Estate | Reuters .