Oct 2014 Financial News

Regional bankers: Guyana must pass anti-money laundering laws

Oct 07, 2014

CASTRIES, ST LUCIA—The Caribbean Association of Banks (CAB) yesterday appealed to the Guyana government to pass the Anti-Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) Amendment Bill.

In an official statement, CAB said while it recognised Guyana’s efforts to put in place alternative measures to address technical deficiencies in existing legal and financial legislative framework for assessment by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), that is just one small step in actions required to comply with international standards.

“The passage of the AML bill is not only about Guyana, but also about the international financial sector as a whole in order to protect all financial systems within the region from ongoing money laundering and terrorist financing risks. We are only as strong as our weakest link,” said CAB chairman Carlton Barclay.

According to CAB, billions of dollars are laundered each year posing significant policy concerns for governments worldwide. As a result, governments and international bodies have undertaken efforts to deter, prevent, and apprehend money launderers. Non-compliance to the global FATF recommendations will have a significant impact on correspondent banking relationships which, in turn, is of vital importance to the facilitation of business in the financial services sector of the region.

CAB said Guyana’s expediency in passing the AML/CFT Bill will not only benefit its own economy and growth but strengthen the regional financial network and its reputation worldwide.

CAB is a community of banks and other financial institutions in the Caribbean/Caricom region, which provides opportunities for discussion on issues impacting the regional banking/financial services community as well as for the sharing of experiences and networking.

(CaribPR Wire)

Source:
Trinidad Guardian, A17
Tuesday October 7, 2014