Skip to content Skip to Search
Skip navigation

UAE set to come off financial crime watchdog’s grey list

By James Drummond
  • Financial Action Task Force team to visit Emirates
  • Watchdog put UAE on enhanced monitoring in 2022

The UAE is poised to come off the so-called grey list, a category that means financial institutions must conduct more research on individuals and companies based in the country to combat money laundering. 

The Financial Action Task Force, an international watchdog that monitors compliance with rules on anti-money laundering (AML) and countering the financing of terrorism (CFT), said on Friday that it would be sending a team to visit the UAE before February next year. 

Such visits are usually a precursor to removal from the enhanced monitoring regime. 

The Paris-based watchdog put the UAE on the grey list in March last year, citing “strategic deficiencies” in its AML practices. 

However in June, the Financial Action Task Force said the UAE was “compliant” with 15 of 40 of its recommendations, “largely compliant” with 24 and “partially compliant” with the final one. The country had no “non-compliant” ratings, it said. 

“The UAE looks forward to welcoming the FATF assessment team to the UAE and further demonstrating the enhanced and sustained effectiveness of our AML/CFT framework,” Ahmed Ali Al Sayegh, UAE minister of state, said in a statement.

Latest articles

Alshaya Group, one of the Gulf’s largest franchise owners, is expected to resume discussions about Starbucks next year if the situation improves

Kuwait’s Alshaya delays Starbucks franchise stake sale

Kuwait’s Alshaya Group is “not in a hurry” to sell a stake in its Starbucks regional franchise due to the ongoing geopolitical unrest and boycotts, which is affecting its valuation, according to a news report. Discussions are expected to resume next year “if the situation improves”, Reuters reported, citing informed sources. The company, one of […]

Saudi Arabia’s new investment of $5bn will be separate from its deposits with the central bank, Egypt's prime minister Mostafa Madbouly said

Egypt explores new mega deals like Ras El-Hekma

Egypt is planning new developments along the Red Sea coast, with at least five new areas identified for deals similar to Ras El-Hekma, prime minister Mostafa Madbouly has said. The UAE sovereign fund ADQ unveiled plans in February to invest $35 billion to build the “largest new city” in Egypt to promote tourism and drive […]

Sharjah is seen as a more affordable alternative to Dubai, making its real estate attractive

Foreign investors help Sharjah real estate thrive

Sharjah’s real estate sector recorded 22 percent growth in the number of foreign investors during the first half of the year compared with the same period last year, attracting investors from 100 different nationalities. The number of properties traded by foreign investors in the emirate during the first six months of this year reached almost […]

As of January 2024, women held less than 11 percent of board seats in the UAE

UAE company boards must appoint at least one woman

Private joint-stock companies in the UAE will have to appoint at least one woman to their board of directors starting from January next year, the Ministry of Economy has announced. The decision is part of the UAE’s efforts to enhance diversity in the corporate sector and increase women’s representation in leadership and decision-making roles. Abdulla […]