Looking forward with determination

Looking forward with determination

25 June 2021

On Wednesday, 23rd June, less than a month after passing the Council of Europe’s Moneyval test, the Financial Action Task Force voted to place Malta on its grey list.

Considering the efforts that have been made over the years to strengthen Malta’s anti-money laundering legislation, it came as an unexpected blow to the jurisdiction.

The government immediately declared that it is determined to do all that is necessary to take Malta back to the community of nations with best practices. PM Robert Abela stated that “we will remain committed to continue our reform program. We will also intensify our dialogue to explain Malta’s achievements better and ensure they are acknowledged and understood by the international community. We will continue working tirelessly with a determination greater than we have ever had before.”

In a similar case to ours, Iceland had been placed on the grey list in 2019 but removed in 2020 after a huge effort by its government and its citizens, where it was confirmed that the measures that Iceland was required to take had been satisfactorily completed and there was a strong political will to continue working to strengthen Iceland’s defenses against money laundering and terrorist financing.

Malta has a highly trained and multi-lingual workforce offering its services from a strategic location in Europe.

We have modern transportation infrastructure and state of the art telecommunications networks as well as a welcoming, warm community, making this country an attractive EU location for investors.

Our firm is determined to make its contribution to ensure that this predicament is a temporary one. We are confident that each citizen and organization, together with the government, will play its part to ensure that Malta quickly re-joins the community of countries that are on the FATF white list.

If you have any more questions on the matter or perhaps would like to know more about ensuring your organization has the required compliance and enforcement measures in place, contact us on contact@ae.com.mt or +356 2095 8200.