Proceeds of Crime Act (2025 Revision)

Summary

This document is the consolidated text of the Proceeds of Crime Act (2025 Revision), the Cayman Islands' principal statute governing anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-terrorist financing (CFT) enforcement, criminal and civil asset confiscation, and the powers of the Financial Reporting Authority (FRA). It consolidates the original 2008 Law with numerous subsequent amending Laws and Acts (including Act 12 of 2023) into a single revised text current to 2 January 2025.

Note: although the supplied metadata title references a 'Proceeds of Crime (Amendment) Act 2026', the body of the document provided is the 2025 Revision consolidation itself, not the text of a distinct 2026 amending Act, so this summary describes the substantive content actually found in the text.

The Act applies broadly to any person or entity conducting 'relevant financial business' in or from the Cayman Islands, as listed in Schedule 1.

• Providers of virtual asset services
• Entities conducting securities investment business
• Dealers in precious metals or precious stones, for cash transactions of US$10,000 or more
• Providers of registered office services to private trust companies
• Real estate/listing agents and CSX broker members
• Persons investing, administering or managing funds on behalf of others

The Act establishes the FRA's functions, including receiving and analysing suspicious activity reports, issuing guidance, and cooperating with domestic and foreign authorities. It also sets out the courts' powers to make confiscation orders, restraint orders, receivership arrangements, and civil recovery orders against proceeds of unlawful conduct, as well as summary procedures for search, seizure, detention and forfeiture of cash suspected to be proceeds of crime.

Because the Act is largely a procedural and enforcement framework (defining court powers, FRA functions, and the scope of regulated 'relevant financial business'), it does not itself impose many new stand-alone compliance deadlines on regulated entities beyond bringing virtual asset service providers and other listed businesses within the AML/CFT regime by virtue of Schedule 1. Detailed operational AML/CFT obligations (customer due diligence, reporting, record-keeping) are generally set out in subsidiary Regulations and Guidance Notes rather than in this Act's visible text.

Key obligations

• Persons conducting 'relevant financial business' as defined in Schedule 1 (including virtual asset service providers, securities investment businesses, dealers in precious metals/stones for cash transactions of US$10,000 or more, and providers of registered office services to private trust companies) fall within the scope of the AML/CFT regime established by this Act.
• Persons subject to restraint orders, property freezing orders or interim receiving orders must comply with restrictions on dealing with the affected property as directed by the court or receiver.
• Respondents to civil recovery proceedings have duties to provide information and cooperate with the Official Receiver/trustee for civil recovery as set out in the relevant Part 4 provisions.

Applies to

persons conducting relevant financial business, virtual asset service providers, securities investment businesses, dealers in precious metals or precious stones, private trust companies, providers of registered office services, real estate agents and brokers, Cayman Islands Stock Exchange listing agents and broker members, persons investing, administering or managing funds on behalf of others, underwriters of life insurance and investment-related insurance