The European Union Money Laundering removes the UAE from the high-risk list. world News
In a significant development for its global financial condition, the European Union on Tuesday announced the removal of the United Arab Emirates from its money-laundering “high-risk” list. This decision reflects the international recognition of UAE’s rapid efforts to deal with financial offenses. Along with the UAE, seven other courts were also removed from the list: Barbados, Gibraltar, Jamaica, Panama, Philippines, Senegal and Uganda.
A transfer landscape: new additions and deletion
While the UAE and others excluded the high -risk list, the European Commission also revealed new additions. Monaco was inducted along with nine other courts, now under the increased investigation of his money laundering control. These newly added countries are Algeria, Angola, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Laos, Lebanon, Namibia, Nepal and Venezuela.The European Union’s move closely aligns closely with the Paris-based international watchdog, an assessment of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). FATF reviews over 200 countries and jurisdictional efforts, which compile the “gray list” for nations under increased monitoring, in preventing money laundering and terrorism financing. In particular, FATF had already removed the Philippines from its list, facing increased monitoring in February, while connecting Laos and Nepal. Monaco is in the FATF list from mid -2024, a list including the European Union member states Bulgaria and Croatia.
Commitment to international standards and future steps
The European Union Commissioner Maria Louis Albuquerk underlined the importance of this update for financial services. He said, “The Commission has now submitted an update to the European Union list that repeats our strong commitment to align with international standards, especially determined by FATF.”The update European Union List is not yet final. Now it will have to undergo investigation by the European Parliament and Member States. If there is no objection, the revised list will officially apply within a month, as confirmed by the Commission.On focusing on this expected update, the Monaco government issued a statement accepting their anticipated placement in the list of European Union, unless the European Parliament or the European Union Council of the Union otherly takes decisions. The princely state emphasized its firm commitment to take all the necessary steps to remove “in short -term”, “the princely state, pointing out active measures.ALSO READ: UAE launched major money laundering crackedown, assembled DH339 million in fine
UAE’s active stance: a glimpse in recent efforts
The European Union’s decision to remove the UAE from its high-risk list comes amidst important and widely promoted efforts by Emirates to strengthen its money-money laundering and counter-terracement finance finening framework. In recent months, UAE regulators have initiated an intensive crack of over DH339 million in fines against local exchange houses, foreign bank branches and insurance companies. This aggressive trend includes heavy fines, pursuing systemic weaknesses under suspected transactions, and expanding regulatory inspections in high -risk sectors such as real estate, gold and jewelery trading, auditing and corporate service providers. In addition, the UAE Ministry of Economy has worked together with the Dubai Police to monitor the beneficiary ownership details and share data, which strengthens the country’s commitment to protect its financial system from misuse.
