Clifford Chance

This article summarises and analyses the National Crime Agency's annual Suspicious Activity Reports report for 2023-2024 to understand current trends and what this may indicate for the future. 

On 28 March 2025, the UK Financial Intelligence Unit ("UKFIU") of the National Crime Agency ("NCA") released its annual Suspicious Activity Reports ("SARs") Report and accompanying Annexes (the "Annual Report"), highlighting key trends in SARs and Defence Against Money Laundering ("DAML") requests made to the NCA from April 2023 to March 2024. Key insights include an increase in SARs submitted to the NCA and DAML refusals, broader use of moratorium extension powers by law enforcement, and a continued rise in Account Freezing Orders ("AFOs"), forfeitures, and restraints resulting from DAML refusals.

Summary of Annual Report

The Annual Report provides the following key insights:

• SAR and DAML Requests: The total number of SARs received by the NCA increased slightly to 872,048, up 1.5% from the previous reporting period. However, there was a decrease in DAML requests submitted to the NCA, down 23% to 57,081. This is attributed to the increase in the threshold amount from £250 to £1,000, introduced in January 2023 under section 339A of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 ("PoCA"), under which deposit-taking bodies, electronic money institutions, and payment institutions are permitted to operate accounts without seeking a DAML.
• DAML Refusals: There was a significant increase in DAML refusals, up 44% from 1,995 to 2,881.^[1] Of these refusals, the proportion of DAML refusals where there was no prior law enforcement investigation increased by 61%, from 1,119 to 1,804. This is, according to the NCA, attributed to a better targeting of cases by the NCA and improved quality of DAML requests (updated guidance on submitting better quality SARs and DAML requests was published by the NCA in 2023). The NCA has indicated that this has led to the "increased and confident" use of AFO powers to target suspected illicit assets by law enforcement.
• Funds Denied: The total value of funds denied to suspected criminals as a result of DAML requests decreased to £190.3m from £240.9m. However, in the past three years, the total funds denied from DAML requests amounted to £818.45m, significantly higher than the previous six years, which totalled £499m, representing a 64% increase.
• Granted DAMLs: There was a significant increase in the number of DAMLs subsequently granted where immediate asset denial action was not taken (i.e., in the form of AFOs, forfeitures, restraints, confiscation uplifts or cash seizures), rising from 72 to 906. This increase is attributed to law enforcement's increased use of the initial moratorium period to further investigate DAMLs beyond the initial 7-day notice period (31 days at a time, up to a maximum of 186 days).
• Sectors: Of the proportion of SAR submissions made using the updated SAR Portal, the banking sector was the largest contributor of SARs, accounting for 78.55% of all submissions made. Financial services made up a further 10.73%, and cryptocurrency exchanges accounted for a further 6.58% of reports made.
• Turnaround Time: The average turnaround time for decisions on all DAML requests remained unchanged at 3.11 days.
• AFOs, Forfeitures and Restraints: Following a refused DAML, there was a 9% increase in AFOs, forfeitures, and restraints obtained, totalling 1,785. The total value of assets denied decreased from £232.19m to £183.46m.
• Terrorist Financing: There was a 22% increase in Terrorism Act 2000 SARs (so-called 'TACT SARs') made to the NCA, totalling 1,132, and a 19% increase in Defence Against Terrorism Financing (DAFT) requests, totalling 406.
• SAR Breaches: There was a relatively stable number of total SAR breaches (assumed to be SAR confidentiality breaches), totalling 8 compared to 7 for the previous reporting period. 

Key Takeaways

While the ongoing annual increase in SARs submitted to the NCA suggests continued pressure on the reporting system, the reduction in DAML requests – due to a higher threshold amount – and noted improvement in the quality of DAML requests and better case targeting by the NCA indicate a possible partial improvement in the reporting regime's efficiency. This is supported by the stable average decision turnaround time for all DAML requests, now at 3.11 days, a development likely welcomed by financial institutions and businesses.

Efforts to further improve the efficiency of the SAR/DAML reporting system are underway through the SARs Reform Programme. It has been reported in Parliament that the number of UKFIU financial intelligence officers has been doubled, the SARs analysis capabilities of Regional Organised Crime Unit officers (who coordinate investigations undertaken by different UK law enforcement agencies) have been enhanced, and the SARs Digital Service rollout is set to continue through FY25/26, which will eventually incorporate machine learning.

However, the increasing use of moratorium period extensions by law enforcement to further investigate DAMLs beyond the initial notice period creates uncertainty for reporters. Additionally, the Court of Appeal's judgment in R (World Uyghur Congress) v NCA [2024] EWCA Civ 715 (handed down in June 2024), which reaffirmed the broad scope of 'criminal property' under PoCA, is expected to lead to an increase in 'defensive' SARs and DAMLs submitted to the NCA, particularly concerning supply chain risks,^[2] and is likely to place additional strain on the reporting system. 

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[1] The term 'DAML refusal' is not clearly defined in the Annual Report but is assumed to include both cases of poor reporting, such as when the NCA refuses a DAML due to insufficient information, and instances where the NCA refuses to grant a DAML and law enforcement goes on to pursue AFO, forfeiture, or restraint applications.

[2] For a detailed summary of the judgment, please refer to the previous Clifford Chance blog here.