October 8, 2018 (MLN): A final round of talks between the Pakistan and a delegation from Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Asia Pacific, has begun today. A team of FATF Asia-Pacific Group (APG) arrived in Islamabad yesterday, on a two-week visit from October 7, 2018 till October 19, 2018, to examine the administrative and legal measures taken by the government to stop terror financing.
The delegation will meet with the officials of interior ministries, finance ministries, the Financial Monitoring Unit (FMU), the State bank of Pakistan (SBP), Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP), National Accountability Bureau (NAB), National Counter-Terrorism Authority (Nacta), Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF), Central Directorate of National Savings and provincial counter-terrorism departments.
The team will conduct an evaluation of the procedures taken up by these establishments to conclude whether or not the country is on its way out of the FATF grey list.
Sources have reported that the government has authorized amendments recommended by the financial regulator in a 10-point action plan in June, for Anti Money Laundering (AML) and Countering Financing of Terrorism (CFT) Regulations 2018. A report of these changes will be presented to the Prime minister and his cabinet for approval.
Under these amended laws, illegal financial transactions at home and abroad will land an individual in an increased sentence of minimum three years imprisonment and a maximum of 10 years, along with fines up to Rs.50 million each and attachment of properties for up to six months instead of 90 days.
Additionally, various measures to determine money trail have also been approved for execution along with the banning of Al-Rehman Trust, a suspected terror group.
Previously in June, Pakistan was formally placed in FATF’s grey list of countries involved in provision of monetary assistance to terrorism and related cause. The organization had then said that, “Pakistan had made a high-level political commitment to work with the global watchdog and Asia/Pacific Group on Money Laundering (APG) to strengthen its anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism regime.”
The FATF team includes experts from British Scotland Yard, US Department of Treasury, Financial Intelligence Unit of Maldives, Indonesian Ministry of Finance, Peoples’ Bank of China, Justice Department of Turkey and three members of the APG.
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