On Friday 18 September the FCA issued a statement, setting out
its approach to assessing applications for listing made by
cannabis-related businesses. The statement is short and will be
followed in due course by a consultation on what guidance should be
issued. At its heart, the FCA's statement is an expression of
how the Regulator interprets the U.K.'s Proceeds of Crime Act
2003 (POCA) in respect of funds generated by cannabis-related
business. To that extent, the FCA's comments have broader
significance to the industry. They will be relevant to any
financial institution or other business in the UK's regulated
sector, who are required both to have effective anti-money
laundering systems and controls and to file suspicious activity
reports. Central to those obligations and responsibilities is a
need to identify the proceeds of crime, a task which has become
problematic since the legalization of cannabis started to take root
globally. It will also be relevant to the
