May.13, 2010, 11:02

The Diamond Dealers Club in New York, in cooperation with the Jewelers Vigilance Committee (JVC), held an Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Seminar in April to bring all members up to date with the U.S. government’s AML compliance requirements.

“This is an especially timely subject, one which affects all diamond dealers,” said DDC President Moshe Mosbacher in opening the proceedings. “It is extremely important that all of us be current regarding the applicable Anti-Money Laundering laws and regulations governing our industry.”

Mosbacher introduced Cecilia Gardner, President and CEO of JVC, who advised the more than 125 DDC members in attendance that the USA PATRIOT Act required each diamond dealer with purchases and/or sales above a threshold amount to have a written Anti-Money Laundering program designed to detect and prevent money laundering and/or the financing of terrorism. Ms. Gardner said that diamond dealers may not engage in any business with people whose names appear on an official list maintained by the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control.

Following the presentation, Mosbacher urged all DDC members to make sure that their Anti-Money Laundering programs were current. “In recent months the IRS had visited area diamond dealers and that failure to comply with the AML regulations could lead to Federal prosecution. The most effective way to avoid any problems is to establish, implement and monitor an AML program that adheres to all applicable laws and regulations,” he said.