Baker & Partners Provides Regulatory Guidance on Combatting Wildlife Crime

The idea

Wildlife and environmental crime is the fourth largest criminal activity globally. Yet, it’s often overlooked. Our initiative aimed to explore the role of the financial services industry in combating wildlife crime in international financial flows.

Chief Executive, Barry Faudemer explains:

“The challenge is that in comparison to crimes like drugs and human trafficking, wildlife crime is massively underreported, and the penalties can be considerably lower. A lack of awareness and understanding of wildlife trafficking means it’s easier for the proceeds of this crime to slip through the cracks, especially in a legal and regulatory system that was never designed to catch them. The launch of Jersey’s Sustainable Finance Action Plan sets out plans for greater reporting powers for environmental crime, reinforcing the tools necessary for identification and reporting. We wanted to raise awareness and address Jersey’s potential exposure to this global issue.”

The initiative

To rally support for the Jersey Sustainable Finance Action Plan point 1 ‘reinforcing our financial crime risk framework on environmental crime’, we endeavoured to bring the story to life in an emotive and compelling way.

We hosted an evening at Durrell, inviting financial services professionals from a cross-section of industries to see firsthand the impact they could make in combatting wildlife crime.

A range of speakers shared their combatting wildlife crime journey. Award-winning documentary producers Jackie Savery and Justin Purefoy set the scene with the story of Juba the chimpanzee, trafficked through war-torn South Sudan. Daniel Stiles, an illegal wildlife trade investigator, then showed how he traced the money involved in wildlife trafficking and underscoring the importance of effective AML and Know-Your-Client processes for stopping criminals in their tracks. Former Durrell Zoological Director, Matt Goetz, shared his on-the-ground conservation work protecting the world’s most trafficked tortoise. His story highlighted the devastation wildlife trafficking can have on keystone species. We concluded by equipping Jersey finance professionals with the tools to combat wildlife crime.

The impact

Managing Partner, Stephen Baker, explains why combatting wildlife crime is so important to our firm:

“Corruption drives desperate people to desperate acts. Wildlife trafficking organisations specifically target corruption vulnerabilities at multiple levels: on the ground through compromised border controls that allow illegal wildlife products to cross international boundaries, and at large through weaknesses in the global financial system that enable the flow of related criminal proceeds.

When we fail to adequately account for corruption in our compliance methodologies, we become inadvertent enablers of these criminal networks. As an international finance centre, we have a critical role in the global fight against wildlife trafficking. By remaining vigilant and ensuring we are not inadvertently laundering the proceeds of wildlife abuse, we fulfil our responsibility to the international community and uphold the rule of law.”

Our regulatory team are passionate about helping industries, client-facing personnel and support roles stay ahead in a constantly evolving regulatory landscape. Through all-staff or team-specific training, policy reviews and onsite support, we help clients to manage risk, achieve compliance, and stay ahead of the latest legislation. For combatting wildlife crime, download our white paper on the topic, including practical information and real-world flags for detecting criminal financial flows.