FATF expresses satisfaction over risk assessment study of Pakistan

PARIS/ISLAMABAD: The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) studied the compliance report of Pakistan in its meeting held in Paris on Monday and expressed satisfaction over the risk assessment study of Pakistan.

With the support of brotherly countries including China, Turkey and Malaysia, the threat of being placed on FATF’s blacklist has decreased compared to the past.

According to sources, Pakistan’s counterterrorism and anti-corruption measures were appreciated by the FATF. The FATF, noting the improvement, called upon Islamabad for further betterment. The Pakistani delegation gave satisfactory answers to the questions put forth by the FATF.

Asia-Pacific Group (APG), a regional affiliate of the FATF, issued a mutual evaluation report on October 2, which noted Pakistan’s compliance to the recommendations of FATF. The report saw Pakistan partially compliant on 26 and largely compliant on nine recommendations. Complete compliance in Financial Institutions Secrecy Law and non-compliance in four areas was also noted. Pakistan showed progress in 36 out of 40 recommendations. The progress, as shown since October 2018, was deemed appropriate.

Pakistan’s compliance with a strong condition, put forth by the APG, to implement measures for curbing black money in the real estate sector was also deemed satisfactory.

The country has undertaken a plan to establish a ‘Real Estate Regulatory Authority’ as per FATF regulations. The initial draft has been prepared by the Security and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP). This will aid in ensuring that no land or property in the country can be transferred in the name of any terrorist or banned outfit.