UAE is praised by Financial Action Task Force for their efforts to fight money laundering
In a new international tribute received by the United Arab Emirates, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) praised the positive progress made by the United Arab Emirates as part of its tireless efforts to develop its national system to combat money laundering, the financing of terrorism and the proliferation of arms.
The Group’s general meeting was held on March 4, 2022. It discussed the UAE’s post-monitoring report and approved the country’s action plan for the coming period, according to the official Emirates News Agency (WAM).
The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) decided to place the United Arab Emirates within the framework of the Group’s enhanced monitoring to follow up on the completion of this plan and support the sustainability of the State’s efforts to develop the financial compliance system.
For its part, the UAE reiterated its commitment to working closely with the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) to complete the action plan and implement its recommendations, in line with the UAE’s established approach to combating financial crime and illicit financial flows. The UAE has significantly enhanced the effectiveness of its national system to combat money-laundering and the financing of terrorism. This progress has been widely praised by many international partners and organizations, as well as by the most prominent experts working in this field.
Commenting on the UAE’s ongoing efforts to combat financial crimes, the UAE’s Executive Office for Combating Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing said: “The UAE takes its role in protecting the integrity of the global financial system very seriously and will work closely with the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) to address areas that need to be improved as soon as possible.. On this basis, the UAE will continue its ongoing efforts to identify and punish criminals and illicit financial networks in line with the outcomes of the Financial Action Task Force and the National Action Plan, all through close coordination with our international partners”.
The United Arab Emirates’ firm commitment to combating money-laundering and the financing of terrorism is a key part of the integrated vision of the United Arab Emirates’ status as an attractive global trading center and keeping pace with the latest developments in growth and development. All prudent measures and effective measures are taken by the Government and the private sector to ensure the stability, sustainability and integrity of the financial system.
Strategic priority
WAM quoted Lieutenant General Sheik Saif bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior, as saying: “The ongoing efforts to strengthen the anti-money-laundering regime in the United Arab Emirates are testimony to our strong commitment to combating this global problem as a strategic priority. I appreciate the efforts of the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Justice and Public Prosecutions, the Ministry of Economy, the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates, the security forces, the Emirati police, customs, the Financial Information Unit and all stakeholders working closely and diligently to combat financial crime… Our efforts to protect our security and economic prosperity always come first”.
According to Al Nahyan, this means that the UAE’s ministry and law enforcement will continue to investigate and arrest complex criminal networks and their assets in close coordination with our local and international partners.
Sheik Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation and Chairman of the Supreme Committee overseeing the national strategy to combat money laundering and terrorist financing, said: “The UAE is keen to accelerate the pace of the National Action Plan to Combat Money Laundering and the Financing of Terrorism, stressing that this issue is a strategic priority for the state… He said: “In my capacity as Chair of the High Committee overseeing the National Strategy to Combat Money-Laundering and the Financing of Terrorism, I wish to reaffirm the commitment of the United Arab Emirates at the highest level to strengthen our national framework to combat money-laundering and the financing of terrorism, including by working closely with the Financial Action Task Force, our international partners and the private sector on a sustainable and continuous basis.. As I have already made clear, financial crime is a concern for all major economies, and we in the UAE take it seriously. By continuing our disciplined approach, we will make a real difference in our ability to prevent illicit financial flows and achieve our goal of making the UAE one of the strongest and most respected economies in the modern world”.
Minister of State for Finance Mohammed bin Hadi al-Husseini said: “The UAE remains strongly committed to continuing to strengthen efforts to maintain the stability and integrity of the financial system.. We will review the detailed recommendations from our international partners and the FATF closely, and make sure they are addressed and implemented as soon as possible, both in the coming period and in the longer term.. To ensure that our national strategy and the National Action Plan to Combat Money Laundering and the Financing of Terrorism continue to focus on improving effectiveness in key areas, reforms to combat money laundering and the financing of terrorism will remain a key priority in our 2022 federal budget and future budgets”.
International concern
Minister of Economy Abdulla bin Touq Al Marri said: “The interconnectedness of international organized crime networks, which has often evolved as a result of technological advances, is of concern to States throughout the world… We in the UAE are facing this through smart and advanced analysis, technology, investigations and public-private partnerships”.
Al Marri explained: “Our main goal was to provide the public and private sectors in the UAE with the tools necessary to strengthen our collective defenses. This includes institutional capacity-building provided for in the risk assessment, the National Action Plan and the National Strategy to Combat Money Laundering and the Financing of Terrorism.. We have also worked closely with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation to facilitate cooperation and coordination with the international community on financial crime concerns, which is the cornerstone of establishing an advanced framework for financial crime for the UAE and abroad”.
Justice Minister Abdullah bin Sultan al-Nuaimi said: “The Ministry of Justice has committed to harnessing all available resources including federal and local courts to combat money laundering. We are committed to preventing and punishing financial crimes as a top priority, as well as strengthening all efforts to prevent financial and fraud crimes”.
Al-Nuaimi revealed: “We have undertaken significant reforms in a short period of time to bring offenders to justice and to continue to work efficiently and effectively to ensure that the results of the Financial Action Task Force are addressed and that appropriate legislation is in place to address money-laundering patterns. The new Federal Law No. 26 of 2021 was promulgated on 13 September 2021 and was preceded by Federal Law No. 20 of 2018 on Combating Money-Laundering, Financing of Terrorism and Financing of Illicit Organizations. The United Arab Emirates will continue to take advantage of the existing cooperation with our international partners and private sector stakeholders in order to achieve lasting justice and to protect our future economic growth in line with the United Arab Emirates Strategic Road Map for the next 50, which was recently drawn up by our leadership.
Khalid Mohammed Belamaa, Governor of the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates and Chairman of the National Committee to Combat Money Laundering, Combating the Financing of Terrorism and Illegal Organizations, said: “The regulations and policies of the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates for licensed financial institutions in the United Arab Emirates aim to address global challenges of money laundering and terrorist financing activities as a strategic priority. Major progress has been made in supervisory initiatives and financial sector supervisory measures to develop an effective and integrated system to combat all types of financial crimes. The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has praised these efforts and, as the UAE is an important regional and international financial center, we continue to commit to putting in place effective controls to counter money laundering and terrorist financing to protect our financial system”.
