Gibraltar successfully "de-greyed", taking a crucial step in anti-money laundering reform
The European Commission's latest announcement in June shows that the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has officially removed Gibraltar from the "enhanced monitoring list" (commonly known as the "grey list"). This decision means that after years of reform efforts, Gibraltar's weaknesses in the anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing system (AML/CFT) have been significantly addressed.
Previously, since 2022, Gibraltar had been listed in the "high-risk jurisdictions" category along with countries like Malta, due to strategic deficiencies in regulatory sanctions and asset confiscation enforcement, and was subject to enhanced supervision by the FATF. Although Gibraltar quickly committed to complying with the reform plan and implementing the 40 recommendations proposed by the FATF, the process of being "whitewashed" by early 2024 was temporarily hindered by opposition from some right-wing Spanish members of the European Parliament.
A turning point occurred in May this year. Moneyval, a European assessment body under FATF, released an assessment report stating that Gibraltar had made "significant" progress in fixing regulatory loopholes. FATF then decided to remove it from the grey list and requested the European Commission to update the high-risk list accordingly. The Commission adopted this suggestion in this round of revisions, but the final removal still requires approval from the European Parliament.
The Commission emphasized in its statement: "We have referred to FATF's monitoring mechanisms and results, and remain consistent with them, to demonstrate the EU's determination to promote the implementation of global standards."
Although it still needs to pass through the European Parliament, the last hurdle, the Gibraltar government has already seen this as an important recognition of the results of the reforms. Nigel Feetham, the Minister of Justice, Trade, and Industry of the region, stated: "This is a significant step, and we will continue to advance the improvement of compliance standards, never taking it lightly."
Selwyn Figueras, a well-known lawyer and partner at Hassans law firm in Gibraltar, posted on LinkedIn: "The European Commission has finally issued a voice of reason, making the external political noise seem even more powerless."
Multiple countries "de-greyed" simultaneously, UAE and Philippines also cleared
In this round of list adjustments, FATF and the European Commission also removed the UAE, Philippines, Jamaica, Senegal, Panama, Uganda, and Barbados from the grey list, indicating that the anti-money laundering mechanisms of multiple jurisdictions around the world are becoming standardized.
However, some countries have been newly added to the grey list, including Algeria, Angola, Côte d'Ivoire, Kenya, Laos, Lebanon, Monaco, Namibia, Nepal, and Venezuela.
In response to external doubts about the list assessment methods, especially the dissatisfaction expressed by Gibraltar previously, the Commission stated that its methods are based on clear standards and refer to information obtained from FATF technical assessments, field visits, and bilateral dialogues, ensuring that the assessments are "technical and transparent."
As Gibraltar takes a crucial step out of the "grey", whether the European Parliament will ultimately pass the removal decision will become a focus of attention and will also test how much political factors play a role in technical compliance assessments.
