The Anti-Money Laundering Council recently explained the benefits and economic implications if the Philippines were to be removed from the gray list of global dirty money watchdog Financial Action Task Force (FATF), starting with a boost to the reputation of the Philippine economy, which would then increase “the reputation and investor confidence of the Philippines, which positively affect the potential influx of foreign investments.”
Additionally, it could also alleviate the administrative burden imposed on the private sector and government agencies working on anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing measures due to the period of reporting to the FATF, since countries in its gray list are required to report to the organization three times a year until they exit the list.
Exiting the FATF gray list also includes the possible lowering of the risk rating for Philippine-related transactions, which may diminish delays and denials of transactions of Filipinos abroad.
The Paris-based FATF, an intergovernmental body established to combat money laundering and terrorism financing, had placed the Philippines on its gray list in June 2021 due to concerns over deficiencies. In its latest update, the country remained in the gray list as it has yet to adequately address the gaps in its regime to counter money laundering as well as terrorist and proliferation financing. The Philippines has only addressed 15 of the 18 action items needed to exit the list.
The three remaining action items include mitigating risks associated with casino junkets, filing criminal charges against persons involved in terrorist financing, and further improving the country’s cross-border measures.
The AMLC is confident that the Philippines would be able to complete all three remaining items this year, hopefully triggering an exit from the list.
The country has been trying to exit the gray list for years, and to be fair, many times we have almost been successful. However, when it comes to such matters where it is only pass or fail, almost doesn’t count. If the country and its people are going to benefit from no longer being in the gray list, the government officials responsible will have to try harder to comply with all the necessary requirements that have already been laid out. The AMLC is confident that we can exit the gray list this year. Hopefully they are right, so we can reap the benefits as soon as possible.*
