Malta and its grey listing: Our initial thoughts
The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has voted to grey list Malta in a vote taken during a plenary session.
The vote follows on earlier reports according to which the UK, the US and Germany had requested that Malta be grey listed, despite having passed a Moneyval assessment in March 2021. The term ‘grey listing’ means that the country would henceforth be placed under closer scrutiny. A country will usually remain grey listed until it implements the various elements of a given action plan within a specific timeframe.
Commenting on this development, Alan Craig, advisory partner at Mazars in Malta, stated “Malta’s grey listing is unfortunate and to a large extent unexpected. A lot of effort and progress was made in the last year. We must however be pragmatic and keep our feet to the ground. Every effort must be made to ensure that our place on the grey list is a temporary occurrence that will be overcome. With the involvement of all stakeholders working towards this common goal, we can make it happen”.
Alan Craig, advisory partner, specialising in internal audit, governance, AML, and regulatory compliance.
Publication date: 24/06/2021
Want to know more?
Want to know more?
Anti-money laundering compliance
Our AML Compliance unit assists organisations by offering tailored support and solutions to meet their regulatory requirements. Our team includes Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialists (CAMS) with extensive experience in the AML/CFT area.
Tackling the source of wealth and funds dilemma
While traditionally subject persons have focused their efforts on the identification and verification of the customer and the underlying beneficial owner/s, less importance has been placed on understanding the Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism (ML/FT) risk relating to the customer’s business activity, the source of wealth and the source of funds.