New guidelines have been set by the Financial Intelligence Unit to identify customers who deal with financial transactions in the country.

The guideline puts in place comprehensive requirements on financial institutions to adequately identify and verify their customers when they establish a business relationship open a bank account or conduct financial transactions.

FIU Director Nazim Buksh said these requirements are put in place to safeguard our financial systems from misuse by money launderers and other criminals.

Financial institutions may now use the new guidelines and apply the customer identification measures on a risk based approach which is to ensure that the procedures are not the same for all types of customers.

This means that low risk customers such as rural dwellers, farmers, micro finance industry, students and senior citizens will now be able to seek financial services with less difficulty with only certain minimum ID documents.

Customers who pose a greater risk to money laundering and fraudulent activities will be subject to enhanced level of scrutiny.

Buksh said the Guideline will enable financial institutions to meet the requirements f the Financial Transactions reporting Act without hindering access to financial services by the ordinary citizens.