This book analytically reviews the impact of the global anti-money
laundering and counter-terrorist financing (AML/CFT) framework on the
compliance trajectory of a number of jurisdictions to this framework.
The work begins by examining the international financial sector reform
and its evolution to inculcate the global framework for AML/CFT
regulations. It challenges the resulting uniform AML/CFT due to its
paradoxical impact on the compliance trajectory of African countries and
emerging economies (ACs/EEs). This is done through an examination of the
pre-conditions for effective regulation and compliance drivers for
ACs/EEs that reveals the behavioural impact of the AML/CFT standards on
the bloc of countries. Through the application of agency theory, it
explores the relationship between ACs/EEs on the one hand and the
international financial institutions that formulate, disseminate and
facilitate compliance with the global framework for AML/CFT standards on
the other. The remaining chapters review empirically the compliance
pressures and resulting compliance trajectory of ACs/EEs with the
AML/CFT standards. The final part of the book provides a detailed
explanation of the compliance challenges of ACs/EEs and the legitimacy
concerns that facilitate this.
This book offers a new direction on the impact of global AML/CFT
standards on ACs/EEs and contributes to the understanding of the
conditions under which the global standards are likely to facilitate
proactive compliance within these blocs of countries. As such it will be
a valuable resource for academics, researchers and policy-makers working
in this area.
