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Commonwealth Secretariat press release

Finance Officials to Consider Tougher Measures in the Fight Against Money Laundering

3 June 1996

Senior Finance Officials from Commonwealth countries will meet at Marlborough House, London, from 4 to 5 June to consider new measures to combat the growing threat of money laundering. The meeting has been convened by the Commonwealth Secretary-General at the request of Commonwealth Heads of Government and Finance Ministers. It is being hosted by the British Treasury and will be opened by the Commonwealth Secretary-General and Mrs Angela Knight, Britain's Economic Secretary and Minister Responsible for Financial Regulation and Money Laundering.

Eighty-five delegates from some 40 countries are expected to attend, including several Governors of central banks, permanent secretaries and representatives from the OECD's Financial Action Task Force (FATF).

The meeting will review progress made by Commonwealth countries in implementing anti-money laundering measures in their financial sectors, and develop "common standards" for assessing progress in implementing the recommendations of FATF for more effective monitoring and supervision of national and international financial transactions. Delegates will also discuss the problems of parallel (underground) economies, the use of money laundering as an instrument of fiscal evasion and specific ways in which international co-operation can be strengthened.

The Finance Officials will consider the adoption of detailed guidelines to help Commonwealth countries strengthen the capacity of their financial sectors to reform procedures and systems for tracking and monitoring money laundering, as well as to improve supervision of financial institutions without compromising efforts to liberalise and deregulate their financial sectors.

They will also review the performance of existing regional arrangements to deal with money laundering, such as the FATF-Asia/Pacific Steering Group and the Caribbean FATF.

The meeting's conclusions and recommendations will provide the basis for further action by Commonwealth Finance Ministers when they next meet in September in Bermuda, prior to the World Bank/IMF Annual Meetings in Washington.

Issued by the Information and Public Affairs Division, Commonwealth Secretariat,
Marlborough House,
Pall Mall,
London SW1Y 5HX,
United Kingdom.
Tel: 0207-839 3411;
Fax: 0207-839 9081;
Telex: 27678

96/22 3 June 1996

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ISSUED BY THE COMMUNICATIONS AND PUBLIC AFFAIRS DIVISION
Commonwealth Secretariat Marlborough House Pall Mall London SW1Y 5HX United Kingdom
Tel: +44 (0)20 7747 6385/6 Fax: +44 (0)20 7839 9081
Email: info@commonwealth.int