Earlier today, I met representatives from the London Somali diaspora community in Acton, to consider what more the government could be doing to ensure the financial sector retains legitimate channels for the transfer of remittances to Somalia.

Problems have arisen where banks have withdrawn services to money service businesses (MSBs), as part of a more global trend of banks withdrawing accounts and other banking services to avoid a range of risks associated with international regulation and complication procedures for anti-money-laundering and countering the financing of terrorism.

It was really important to hear the experiences of the London Somali community first-hand, as remittances play a key role in supporting developing countries. The government is committed to ensuring that UK customers are able to access the financial services they need to keep remittances flowing, and today’s discussion will help us inform policy-making on this issue going forward.

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