SINGAPORE regulators and the banking industry launched on Monday two best practice papers to better prevent money laundering and terrorism financing, in the wake of the 1MDB scandal that hit the city-state and amid the increasing sophistication of financial crimes.

The papers discussed common red flags linked to trade-based money laundering, as well as recent typologies involving the misuse of companies and other legal persons. Such typologies include the round-tripping of funds controlled by the same or related individuals, said Chua Kim Leng, special advisor, financial supervision group, Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), in a speech during an industry dialogue on Monday.

The dialogue was held as part of the AML/CFT Industry Partnership (ACIP), a private-public partnership set up in April 2017. AML/CFT refers to anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism.

Mr Chua said the dialogue session represents "a year of open, honest discussion between the industry and government agencies".

"The trust we have built over the last year will be invaluable in tackling the evolving challenges we face," he added.