"The European Commission has updated its list of high-risk jurisdictions that have strategic deficiencies in their national anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism regimes," which serves to require EU entities to apply "enhanced vigilance in transactions involving these countries," the institution announced in a press release.
Pointing out that "this measure is important to protect the EU financial system," the EU executive reports that third-country jurisdictions such as Angola, Algeria, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Laos, Lebanon, Monaco, Namibia, Nepal and Venezuela have been added to the list.
Countries such as Barbados, Gibraltar, Jamaica, Panama, the Philippines, Senegal, Uganda and the United Arab Emirates have already been removed from the list.
The European Union, in collaboration with the Financial Action Task Force, regularly identifies countries with significant risks to the financial system, especially with regard to money laundering and the financing of terrorism.
The list includes jurisdictions subject to enhanced monitoring and considered high risk, which also include (and were already included in) Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo, Haiti, Iran, Mali, Mozambique, Myanmar, Nigeria, North Korea, South Africa, South Sudan, Syria, Tanzania, Trinidad and Tobago, Vanuatu, Vietnam and Yemen.
The updated list takes into account the work of the Financial Action Task Force, the intergovernmental organization that sets international standards for the fight against money laundering and terrorist financing.
Quoted in the note, the European Commissioner responsible for Financial Services and the Savings and Investment Union, Maria Luís Albuquerque, stresses that "the identification and inclusion in the list of high-risk jurisdictions remains a crucial instrument for safeguarding the integrity of the EU financial system".
"Following a thorough technical assessment and having listened carefully to the concerns expressed regarding its latest proposal, the Commission has now presented an update of the EU list that reiterates our strong commitment to aligning with international standards," stressed the former Portuguese minister.
The European Commission is responsible for regularly updating the list of high-risk third-country jurisdictions, and the update comes into force after review and no objection by the European Parliament and the Council.
