Washington DC February 26 2022: The Executive Office of the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter Terrorism Financing (AML/CTF) has been commended as part of the International Monetary Fund’s most recent Article IV report, which highlighted the UAE’s “major efforts” to improve its AML/CTF response in line with “deficiencies identified by the Financial Action Task Force.”
Additional entities commended included the AML/CTF unit in the Central Bank of the UAE and its efforts to “operationalise a new risk-based supervisory framework.”
The report, which was published on 17th February 2022, highlighted that “Directors welcomed the progress made with the AML/CFT framework and encouraged the authorities to sustain the reform momentum” while welcoming “progress to strengthen AML/CFT measures.”
Commenting on the publication of the report, Hamid Al Zaabi, Director-General of the Executive Office of Anti-Money Laundering and Counter Terrorism Financing, said, “The acknowledgement of our national efforts to improve our collective response to money laundering and terrorism financing from a respected institution such as the International Monetary Fund highlights the agility of the UAE to recognise challenges and address them in an organised and methodical manner. Through ongoing cooperation with both local and international regulators, we will continue to safeguard the country’s financial sector from illicit activity.”
In addition to the high-level efforts made, the report also cited the UAE’s new legislation, which “was passed to require the submission of beneficial ownership information by all legal entities registered in the UAE.” The report also noted that the UAE had “delivered several important legislative and institutional reforms.”
Conducted annually, the IMF Article IV Consultations include a press release, informational annex, and staff report, which is prepared by IMF team members for the Executive Board’s consideration. Typically, the report includes an in-depth assessment of the country’s current socioeconomic status while recognising achievements and highlighting areas of improvement.
