UAE Likely To Be On FATF Grey List

Web Desk — The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) is seriously considering placing the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on the list of countries subject to more oversight for shortcomings in combating money laundering and terror financing, even after a recent government push to stamp out illicit transactions, Bloomberg has reported.

In short, The FATF may add UAE to its “gray list” early this year, one of two classifications used by the intergovernmental body for nations determined to have “strategic deficiencies,” the report added.

“There are undoubtedly costs associated with being gray-listed,” said Katherine Bauer, a former Treasury Department official who led the U.S. delegation to the Middle East and North Africa Financial Action Task Force, a regional body modeled after the FATF.

Bauer, who’s now a fellow with the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, said, “Many global regulators require that banks and financial institutions review, if not revise, their risk ratings and associated due diligence measures for counterparties in countries on the FATF list.”

The report further added that the UAE submitted a report to the FATF in November but hasn’t reached many of the thresholds needed to stay off the gray list. The group is expected to make a decision at a plenary meeting set for late February.

There are still several opportunities for Emirati officials to make their case to the FATF, including during a planned trip to Paris in the coming weeks.

Hamid Al Zaabi, director-general of the UAE Executive Office for Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing, said, “We are taking this very seriously, having partnered with highly skilled and experienced specialists with a track record in meeting best international practices and standards.”