Govt forms panel to curb money laundering, terror financing

14-member committee includes officials from FBR, NAB, FIA, ANF, CTDs

ISLAMABAD:

The federal government has established a 14-member high-powered committee to curb money laundering, terrorism financing and confiscate stolen money.

According to a notification issued by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Cell set up at the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), the 14-member committee comprises representatives from the FBR, Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), intelligence agencies and the provincial counter-terrorism agencies.

According to the notification, a copy of which is available with The Express Tribune, the committee has been formed under Section 5(9) of the Anti-Money Laundering Act, 2010, following the decision taken at the 24th meeting of the General Committee for Prevention of Money Laundering.

The Multi-Agency Money Laundering Investigation and Confiscation Committee (MAMLICC) will assist in the formulation and implementation of plans, programmes and policies to curb money laundering and terrorism financing, the document said.

The committee will work as a subcommittee of the General Committee of the FATF Secretariat, comprising officers – in Grade 19 and above—from the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), FIA, Anti-Narcotics Tax Force (ANF), Financial Monitoring Unit (FMU), FBR's Inland Revenue, customs department, provincial counter-terrorism departments (CTDs) and intelligence agencies.

The director general of the FATF Secretariat will head the committee. It will meet on a quarterly basis but sessions could also be convened earlier. The agenda of the meeting will be conveyed to the concerned departments a week before the meeting.

The committee will identify emerging trends in money laundering and terror financing at the national and international levels and present its recommendations for policy developments, national anti-money laundering plan and joint operation action plan.

It will provide resources for training of the staff, present inputs for the allocation of opportunities and resources as well as other technical requirements and make suggestions and measures in this regard.

The international cooperation in the fight against money laundering and follow-up on the exchange procedures will be part of the committee's responsibilities. It will also be responsible for formulating mechanisms and coordination of information between intelligence agencies, law-enforcement agencies (LEAs) and the FMU in money laundering cases.

The committee will make recommendations to improve overall cooperation at the local level in the investigation into the money laundering cases through confiscation of stolen assets and money, according to the official document.

It will monitor the process of recovery and deposit of funds in the national treasury after completion of legal procedures of the confiscated money and assets. It will also play a role in removing legal and procedural obstacles in money laundering and terror financing cases.