Kuwait City: In a move to strengthen efforts against money laundering and terrorist financing, Kuwaiti banks have intensified their monitoring of funds transferred through the “Wamd” and “Link” payment services, particularly when such transactions are linked to personal accounts.
According to informed sources cited by Al-Rai, regulatory authorities have expanded their scrutiny of transactions where business owners or individuals receive commercial payments into their personal accounts. Banks now question any unusual or high-value transfers, even if they occur only once, to ensure compliance with anti-money laundering regulations.
The sources explained that any transaction exceeding the customer’s declared income in the bank’s “Know Your Customer” (KYC) records may trigger an investigation. If the account holder fails to provide a convincing explanation, the case may be referred to the Financial Investigations Unit for further review.
Authorities emphasized that personal accounts must not be used for business or corporate transactions, warning that several individuals have already been investigated after receiving commercial funds in amounts far exceeding their reported income. In such cases, account holders were required to sign pledges committing not to use their personal accounts for business-related transfers in the future.
The tighter monitoring reflects a broader regulatory effort to ensure financial transparency and safeguard Kuwait’s banking system from misuse.
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