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Remolona to attend FATF meetings next month, bats for 'gray list' removal
Remolona to attend FATF meetings next month, bats for 'gray list' removal
Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Eli M. Remolona Jr. is attending the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Plenary and Working Group Meetings in Paris, France next month to participate in the Philippines’ bid to get out of the “gray list” or the list of countries with money-laundering issues.
In a statement on Tuesday, Jan. 21, the BSP said that since Remolona will attend the FATF meetings from Feb. 17 to Feb. 20, the Monetary Board, BSP’s policy-making arm, will reschedule its Feb. 20 policy rate meeting to an earlier date of Feb. 13. Remolona as governor, is chairperson of the Monetary Board.
It is anticipated that Remolona's presence in the upcoming FATF meetings indicates a possible delisting from the gray list after three and a half years.
During its last FATF plenary meetings in October 2024, the Philippines was acknowledged as implementing the required 18 action plans needed to exit the gray list.
The FATF said the Philippines has “substantially completed its action plan and warrants an on-site assessment to verify that the implementation of AML/CFT (anti-money laundering/ combating financing of terrorism) reforms has begun and is being sustained.”
In its assessment, the global AML/CFT watchdog said the Philippines has addressed key reforms such as: demonstrating that risk-based supervision of DNFBPs (designated non-financial businesses and professions) is occurring; demonstrating that supervisors are using AML/CFT controls to mitigate risks associated with casino junkets; implementing the new registration requirements for MVTS (money or value transfer services) and applying sanctions to unregistered and illegal remittance operators.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) in its latest country surveillance report issued last December, said that “keeping up with evolving FATF requirements will be important in the context of the next mutual evaluation in 2027.”
“Reforming the bank secrecy law will enhance the BSP’s supervisory powers and strengthen AML/CFT effectiveness with respect to AML/CFT supervision and financial investigations,” according to the IMF.
The Philippines has been on the FATF gray list since June 25, 2021. To facilitate the exit, the FATF’s Asia/Pacific Joint Group (APJG) will verify the sustainability of the government’s AML/CTF reforms by coming here before the plenary hall meetings next month.
As a watchlisted country, the Philippines is subject to increased monitoring and is required to actively work with the FATF. Failure to be removed from the gray list will have an impact on the country’s financial reputation on a global scale.