A 2021 investigation found that more than four dozen universities in the UK had accepted millions of pounds in direct cash payments from students in countries where financial crime is common; despite this, more recent research reveals that higher ed in the UK is still unequipped to handle its money laundering risk. Simon Luke of FirstAML explores the subject and what makes education a particularly choice target.
Editor’s note: This article’s author, Simon Luke, is UK country manager at FirstAML, an AML software provider.
It’s well-known that the property and banking sectors are vulnerable to money laundering. But it may come as more of a surprise that higher education in the UK is also a prime target for criminals. It’s easy to see why: in 2021, a Times investigation found that nearly 50 UK universities had accepted upwards of £52 million in direct cash payments for tuition and fees from students hailing from countries known to be at high risk for financial crime.
Universities are a target of choice because of the ease with which dirty money can be cleaned by entering the legitimate financial system. Now, joint research by Cardiff University, the University of the West of England and the University of Reading has shown that a fifth of UK universities that responded to a freedom of information…
