The Philippines is being urged by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) to continue to up its game in regards to money laundering, terrorist financing and proliferation financing’.
In a Friday note, the Paris-based group noted that the Philippines was one of 29 jurisdictions ‘under increased monitoring’ – also known as a “grey list”. The country has been on the “grey list” since June of 2021.
The FATF now notes that the country needs to ‘work on implementing its action plan to address strategic deficiencies, looking at fire points in particular.
These include ‘demonstrating that supervisors are using AML/CFT (Anti-money laundering and counter financing of terrorism) controls to mitigate risks associated with casino junkets’, one of the main points it reinforced in June of last year at its last meeting.
It also asks the nation to demonstrate ‘an increase in ML (money laundering) investigations and prosecutions in line with risk’.
Three other main points are outlined, including supervision of Designated Non-Financial Businesses and Professions and better identification and prosecution of terrorism financing cases.
The FATF ‘urges the Philippines to swiftly implement its action plan to address the above-mentioned strategic deficiencies as soon as possible, as all deadlines expired in January 2023’.
