Southeast Asia · Country coverage

AML/CTF Compliance in Malaysia

Malaysia regulates AML/CTF through Bank Negara Malaysia under the Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Unlawful Activities Act 2001. See the obligations and how MemberCheck supports them.

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Screening coverage for Malaysia
  • Sanctions & PEP screening
  • Adverse media checks
  • Customer identity verification
  • Jurisdiction risk checks
  • Ongoing monitoring

Key facts

AML supervisor / FIUBank Negara Malaysia (BNM)
FATF statusAPG member (FATF-style body)
Primary legislationAnti-Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Unlawful Activities Act 2001 (AMLA)
Overview

AML/CTF compliance in Malaysia.

Malaysia regulates AML/CTF through Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM), the competent authority under the Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Unlawful Activities Act 2001 (AMLA). BNM sets AML/CTF policy, supervises reporting institutions for compliance, and acts as the financial intelligence unit, receiving and analysing Suspicious Transaction Reports. The Securities Commission Malaysia and Labuan Financial Services Authority are the supervisory authorities for the capital market and the Labuan International Business and Financial Centre respectively.

The AMLA sets a clear series of duties. Institutions must carry out customer due diligence and verify beneficial owners, conduct ongoing due diligence on accounts and relationships, and keep records for at least six years. They must report cash transactions above RM 25,000, file Suspicious Transaction Reports for suspected money laundering or terrorism financing, and maintain internal programmes, management-level compliance officers, and independent audit functions.

MemberCheck helps teams meet these obligations by screening customers and entities against global sanctions, PEP, and adverse-media data, verifying identities, and monitoring risk continuously, with a clear audit trail behind every decision.

Regulation

Key laws and regulators.

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Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM)

The competent authority under the AMLA. BNM sets policy, supervises reporting institutions for AML/CTF compliance, and acts as the financial intelligence unit, receiving and analysing Suspicious Transaction Reports. The Securities Commission Malaysia and Labuan Financial Services Authority supervise their own sectors.

Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Unlawful Activities Act 2001 (AMLA)

Malaysia's principal AML statute, which sets customer due diligence, record-keeping, reporting, and internal programme duties for reporting institutions.

Reporting institution duties

The AMLA requires institutions to run CDD and ongoing due diligence, keep records for at least six years, and designate management-level compliance officers.

Obligations

What regulated businesses must do.

  • Conduct customer due diligence and verify beneficial owners
  • Perform ongoing due diligence on accounts and relationships
  • Report cash transactions above RM 25,000 to the authority
  • File Suspicious Transaction Reports for suspected ML/TF activity
  • Keep records for at least six years
  • Designate management-level compliance officers and audit functions
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Countries covered
FAQ

Common questions.

Who supervises AML/CTF in Malaysia?

Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) is the competent authority under the AMLA and holds both roles, since it supervises reporting institutions for AML/CTF compliance and acts as the financial intelligence unit, receiving and analysing Suspicious Transaction Reports. Two other supervisory authorities cover their own sectors, the Securities Commission Malaysia for capital market intermediaries and Labuan Financial Services Authority for entities in the Labuan International Business and Financial Centre.

What is the main AML law in Malaysia?

The Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Unlawful Activities Act 2001 (AMLA) is Malaysia's principal statute, setting due diligence, reporting, and record-keeping duties.

Is Malaysia a member of FATF?

Malaysia is a member of the Asia/Pacific Group on Money Laundering, a FATF-style regional body, and applies FATF standards through that membership.

How does MemberCheck support AML compliance in Malaysia?

MemberCheck screens customers and entities against global sanctions, PEP, and adverse-media data, verifies identities, and monitors risk continuously, with an audit trail behind every decision.

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