Reported by Patrick Jack

A fifth of UK universities still accept cash for tuition fees despite the risk of it being a method of laundering criminal money, according to new research.

A report from Cardiff University and the University of the West of England (UWE) says that a significant number of providers are failing to provide staff and students with guidance on money laundering risks.

The study, published in the journal the Criminal Law Review, says that the UK government requires financial institutions and non-financial businesses to implement preventive measures against money laundering and terrorism financing vulnerabilities.

But because higher education institutions are not explicitly incorporated within the scope of these regulations, it leaves a “significant gap” in how the law is being implemented.

However, the UK is not alone in this, Nicholas Ryder, lead author and professor of law at Cardiff University, told Times Higher Education. The US also misses higher education from its anti-money laundering laws.

Reads full report: https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/uk-universities-vulnerable-money-laundering