Swedish banks join forces to fight money laundering

The five largest banks in Sweden have teamed up with the country's police to launch an anti-money laundering initiative.

Danske Bank, Handelsbanken, Nordea, SEB and Swedbank are onboard for the Swedish Anti Money Laundering Initiative (Samlit), which will begin life as a pilot project ahead of a full launch next year.

Under Samlit, the banks will be able to collectively share information on methods, suspicious transaction patterns and new types of crime that have been jointly identified.

Johanna Norberg, country manager, Danske Bank Sweden, says: "Like a chameleon, this type of crime is constantly changing form and pattern, so for us, this collaboration means increased efficiency and proactivity."

In March, Sweden’s FSA fined Swedbank a record $385 million over breaches in its anti-money laundering work.