Hong Kong has become an important conduit for laundering money fleeing London, say risk consultants and lawyers.
Britain’s tightening of money-laundering regulations had resulted in an increasing number of private banks telling customers that their accounts would be closed, said Ambrose Carey, a director of British risk consultancy Alaco…
…”Much of that money has either come from, or been channelled through, Hong Kong. It would be foolish to assume that all the money that has poured into London from Hong Kong is clean,” he said.
Overseas buyers spent £2.2 billion (HK$26.7 billion) on property in London in 2012, up from £1.8 billion in 2011, according to consultancy Knight Frank. Hong Kong buyers accounted for 16 per cent of the purchases while mainland Chinese took 5 per cent.
