By Peter OBIORA InvestAdvocate
Lagos (INVESTADVOCATE)- The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said it’s reviewing its strategy for ant-money laundering and financing of terrorism.
The IMF said its executive board on March 12, 2014, reviewed recent developments in anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT), and discussed proposals for the fund’s future strategy on AML/CFT.
The IMF said for more than a decade, it has made important contributions to international efforts to fight money laundering and terrorist financing. ‘’Originally, the fund’s AML/CFT program focused primarily on AML/CFT assessments – as part of the reports on the observance of standards and codes (ROSC) program and of the financial sector assessment program (FSAP) – and capacity development activities. More recently, AML/CFT issues have also been increasingly included in other areas of fund work, namely surveillance and fund-supported programs,’’ the IMF said.
The IMF said the basis for AML/CFT assessments has recently changed: the financial action task force (FATF), the standard setter for AML/CFT) revised the AML/CFT standard in 2012 and adopted a common assessment methodology and procedures in 2013. ‘’The FATF also took important steps to strengthen the quality and consistency of future assessments. It adopted stronger quality controls for its own assessments, ensured that comparable measures are adopted by the FATF style regional bodies (FSRBs), and established an ex post review mechanism to address sub-quality reports,’’ the IMF said.
According to the fund, under the current policy, every FSAP should be associated with an AML/CFT assessment conducted approximately every five (5) years, and, to the extent possible, within 18 months before or after the relevant FSAP mission.
The IMF says its executive board endorsed the opportunity to review its strategy on AML/CFT. ‘’They agreed that the fund’s work has significantly contributed to the international community’s response to money laundering and the financing of terrorism, and encouraged continued cooperation in this area with the world bank, ATF and the FATF?style regional bodies (FSRBs),’’ the IMF said.
The IMF affirmed that its directors also endorsed the 2012 revision of the AML/CFT standard by FATF and the recent update of the assessment methodology, in particular the greater attention to risks and country context, which should result in more focused and meaningful assessments.
The IMF directors further affirmed that deficiencies in a country’s AML/CFT regime can have important implications for macroeconomic and financial stability and broadly supported the direction taken by staff in including financial integrity issues in Article IV consultations and fund?supported programs.
Similarly, the IMF directors stressed the importance of timely and accurate AML/CFT input into every FSAP. According to them, this input should be based on a comprehensive quality AML/CFT assessment and, in due course, on targeted updates/ ROSCs, in line with the approach taken under other standards and codes.
The IMF directors noted that the next review of the AML/CFT program would be expected to be completed within the next four (4) years.
