Dr. Gil Feiler, a prominent expert on Middle East economics, estimated the total money laundering in the United Arab Emirates at more than US$ 30 billion per year. He said money laundering phenomena is booming in this part of the world. Dr. Feiler, author of <i>Rethinking Business Strategy in the Middle East</i> for the Economist Intelligence Unit, stressed that the easiness of money laundering is also due to the fact that there is no income tax in the UAE and its surrounding countries around the emirates. Many foreigners, mainly European and Russians, are taking advantage and laundering their money in the small and prosperous emirates, he added. The biggest problem, according to Dr. Feiler, is the fact that at various ways a friction of these monies finding its way to finance global "terrorism."
It is true that the government of the UAE taking steps to curb money laundering but it seems that until now the results are not encouraging, and the UAE is an heaven to money launderers, he was quoted as saying.
Last week, the <i>AP</i> reported that the Federal Reserve Board ordered ABN AMRO Bank NV to pay roughly $80 million in fines. The bank acknowledged that employees of its Dubai, United Arab Emirates, office processed wire transfers between 1997 and 2004 on behalf of Iranian and Libyan clients. Wire transfers involving Iranian and Libyan nationals were prohibited during that period by the US authorities.
Dr. Feiler, who spoke on the various channels of money laundering in the Arab Gulf region, pinpointed to some sectors whereby the UAE is not a recognized manufacturer but its trade volume was huge.
