by Carine Claude
Art Basel at Miami Beach, 2019. © Art Basel
One year later, there is still a struggle to adapt. Since January 2020, Europe's "fifth anti-money laundering directive" has applied to art market professionals in the Union, including the UK. While Europeans are still finding their bearings, the effects of this new regulation designed to combat money laundering and terrorist financing are now impacting the US. To align with the new European legislation, the US Treasury Department issued a notice to US art market participants in October 2020. This notice is still raising a host of questions from American professionals, who, unlike their European counterparts, are not used to governments intruding into their business practices. On both sides of the Atlantic, professionals now have to adapt to the changes brought about by the implementation of these Anti-Money Laundering (AML) regulations. The contemporary art fair Art Basel seized the opportunity to tackle this complex subject during an online conference on February 25. Led by Noah… read more