The Philippine Anti-Money Laundering Council said this week it has received commitment from multiple government agencies to complete various deliverables required to ensure the country exits a “grey list” of nations deemed to have deficient Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing controls.
Such direction was originally issued by the Office of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr in October, with a memorandum emphasizing the “urgent implementation” of the Philippines’ National AML, CTF and Counter-Proliferation Financing Strategy 2023-2027. The strategy was developed after the country was placed on the “grey list” by the Financial Action Task Force in June 2021 for failure to address certain deficiencies.
Among the areas identified by FATF at the time was the need to continue strengthening AML/CTF controls around casino junkets and better sharing of information around various financial institutions.
In a circular sent this week, AML Council Secretariat Executive Director Matthew M. David said a meeting of supervisors, regulators, prosecutors and law enforcement agencies was held earlier this month at which efforts aimed at completing such deliverables by the end of 2024 were discussed.
“In the meeting, all concerned agencies expressed commitment to complete their respective action plan items,” David said.
Noting that the key areas still to be addressed included casino junkets, designated non-financial businesses and professions (DNFBPs), beneficial ownership, money laundering and terrorism financing prosecution, and cross border declaration measures, David added, “Through collaboration among the agencies, we are strengthening our resolve to address the remaining action plan items suggested by FATF and report the progress to the President.”
The collaborative efforts taken by government agencies have resulted in increased compliance among DNFBPs, mitigation of risks in casino junkets, and a more robust beneficial ownership information database, he said.
It is understood that gaming regulator PAGCOR is among the agencies involved.
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