Eight money changing, remittance business premises raided

KUALA LUMPUR: Bank Negara recently raided eight money changing and remittance business premises operating without a licence granted under section 7(1) of Money Services Business Act 2011 (MSBA), which is an offence under section 4(1) of MSBA.

The entities involved were Anver Cahaya Enterprise, Kawzar Enterprise, Mabruk Mohaideen Enterprise, Nisha Khan Enterprise, Rifai Maju Enterprise, B First Resources, Money Me@Hotel Kita and Nur Ekspress Enterprise. The central bank said the raids were conducted at premises located along Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman and Jalan Datuk Keramat, Kuala Lumpur, with seizure made on the relevant documents and computer peripherals to assist in the investigations.

It added that any person or company who commits an offence under section 4(1) of the MSBA shall upon conviction, be liable to a fine not exceeding RM5mil or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 10 years or both. “The raiding exercise was conducted in collaboration with the police and the Immigration Department.

“Five illegal immigrants who were involved in manning the premises and customers of the illegal entities were detained by the Immigration Department for investigations under the Immigration Act 1959/63 (Act 155),” said Bank Negara in a statement.

The central bank said the raiding exercise was part of the continuous enforcement actions undertaken by the Bank Negara to protect the public against potential financial losses when dealing with unlicensed entities.

“As such, members of the public are advised not to deal or conduct any money changing or remittance transactions with illegal money services business operators and their agents,” it added.