AUSTRAC teams up with regional counterparts

Justice Minister Michael Keenan will today announce the creation of a regional working group aimed at cutting off terror funding.

Michael Keenan, Minister for Justice and Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for Counter Terrorism. Picture: AAP.

Australia’s counter-terrorism financing agency AUSTRAC will share critical intelligence for the first time with counter-terror units in ASEAN countries including the Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia in a bid to firewall Southeast Asia against the international underground funding of ISIS and other terrorist groups.

The pact is the first such cross-country agreement of its kind and comes as authorities fear that even small amounts of money flowing into emerging terror hot spots could fund significant terrorist attacks, with the 2002 Bali bombings estimated to have been funded with less than $100,000.

Justice Minister Michael Keenan will today announce the creation of the Southeast Asia Counter-Terrorism Financing Working Group, which will link finance intelligence units across the region to disrupt the increasing flow of funds suspected of being used to fund terrorist activities.

Speaking from Kuala Lumpur where he is attending a 35-nation counter-terrorism financing summit, the Justice Minister told The Australian that the working group had been established for the purpose of cutting off the funding supply lines of ISIS and affiliated terrorist organisations.

AUSTRAC estimates that more than $1 million has been channelled into Indonesia alone in the past year.

“Terrorists need money to carry out their evil plans, and even small amounts of money can do enormous amounts of damage,” Mr Keenan said.

“We are going after that money, and will build a financial firewall for terror funding around Southeast Asia.

“The financial world is incredibly complex and difficult to navigate but our experts, and the experts of our neighbours, will make it harder and harder for terrorists to hide in that complexity.”

The regional network will be led by AUSTRAC in a partnership with the Philippines Anti-Money Laundering Council.

The Australian understands that the countries so far signed up to the intelligence sharing arrangement include Australia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Indonesia, Brunei, Thailand and Singapore.

Mr Keenan said sources of terrorism financing had now become a critical issue in the region with increasingly sophisticated exploitation of the international financial system to channel terrorism related funds.

“To effectively combat terrorism in our region, we must also cut off terrorists’ access to financing,” Mr Keenan said.

“Intelligence generated through this initiative will provide regional authorities greater insights into the movement and tracking of funds that supports terrorism in Southeast Asia.

“Above all, this group will be focused on co-ordinating operational outcomes to degrade the financial lifeline of (ISIS) and other terrorist groups in the region.”

A regional risk assessment conducted by AUSTRAC estimated that foreign sources transferred more than $1 million in terrorism financing into Indonesia between 2014 and 2015. Australia, however, recorded the highest number of “suspicious” transactions with 536 last year. Singapore, one of the largest financial centres in the world, recorded 205 while Indonesia recorded 185.

“Every act of terror must be funded,” Mr Keenan said.

“The Bali bombings, which killed over 200 people, were financed by just $92,000. While this might seem a small sum, it allowed the perpetrators to conduct this horrific attack.

“We are leading the way — nowhere else in the world do countries come together in this way to develop regional solutions to terrorism financing.”