On Friday, all eyes in Pakistan will be on Berlin, as the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), a global watchdog for combatting money laundering and terrorist financing, is expected to announce today (Friday) whether Pakistan will be removed from or retained on its increased monitoring list, also known as the "grey list."
The four-day plenary session began in Berlin, Germany, on Tuesday. FATF officials will hold a press conference at 7:30pm today to share the outcome of the session.
Pakistan was placed on the grey list in June 2018 and was given a 27-point action plan to restrict terror financing activities. In October last year, the country was given another seven-point action plan after it completed 26 of the 27-point action plan originally given to it in June 2018.
In the last plenary held in March, Pakistan informed the FATF that it had completed 32 of the 34 action items.
FATF retained Pakistan in its “grey list” and directed it to do more in investigating and prosecuting senior leaders and commanders of UN-designated terrorist groups for terror financing.
Minister of state for foreign affairs Hina Rabbani Khar is heading the Pakistani delegation participating in the FATF plenary meeting being held in Berlin.
Khar urged reporters not to engage in speculative and/or baseless speculation, stating that the government had arranged a media briefing at on Saturday morning.
The Financial Action Task Force (on Money Laundering) (FATF), also known by its French name, Groupe d'action financière (GAFI), is an intergovernmental organisation founded in 1989 on the initiative of the G7 to develop policies to combat money laundering.
In 2001, its mandate was expanded to include terrorism financing.
The objectives of FATF are to set standards and promote effective implementation of legal, regulatory and operational measures for combating money laundering, terrorist financing and other related threats to the integrity of the international financial system.
FATF is a "policy-making body" that works to generate the necessary political will to bring about national legislative and regulatory reforms in these areas. FATF monitors progress in implementing its Recommendations through "peer reviews" ("mutual evaluations") of member countries.
Since 2000, FATF has maintained the FATF blacklist (formally called the "Call for action") and the FATF greylist (formally called the "Other monitored jurisdictions").
The blacklist has led financial institutions to shift resources and services away from the listed.[8] This in turn has motivated domestic economic and political actors in the listed countries to pressure their governments to introduce regulations that are compliant with the FATF.
