Title: Belgium’s Progress and Challenges in Combating Financial Crimes: Insights from the Latest FATF Report

Brussels - Belgian Advancements and Areas for Improvement

The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) recently released an evaluation report on Belgium’s progress in implementing global standards against financial crimes, particularly money laundering and terrorism financing.

FATF Recommendations

The FATF’s Recommendations assess a country’s adherence to these standards. Here’s an overview of Belgium’s 2018 progress report:

#### Compliant Recommendations
- R.1 - Assessing risk and applying risk-based approach
- R.2 - National cooperation and coordination
- R.3 - Money laundering offense
- R.4 - Confiscation and provisional measures
- R.5 - Terrorist financing offense
- R.6 - Transparency and beneficial ownership of legal persons (R.24)
- R.7 - Transparency and beneficial ownership of legal arrangements (R.25)
- R.11 - Record keeping
- R.12 - Politically exposed persons
- R.13 - Customer due diligence
- R.15 - New technologies
- R.16 - Wire transfers
- R.18 - Internal controls and foreign branches and subsidiaries
- R.20 - Reporting of suspicious transactions
- R.21 - Tipping-off and confidentiality
- R.22 - Designated non-financial businesses and professions (DNFBPs) customer due diligence
- R.23 - DNFBPs: Other measures
- R.24 - Regulation and supervision of financial institutions
- R.26 - Powers of supervisors
- R.28 - Regulation and supervision of DNFBPs
- R.29 - Financial intelligence units
- R.30 - Responsibilities of law enforcement and investigative authorities
- R.32 - Cash couriers
- R.35 - Sanctions
- R.36 - International instruments
- R.38 - Mutual legal assistance: freezing and confiscation
- R.39 - Extradition
- R.40 - Other forms of international cooperation

#### Partially Compliant Recommendations
- R.6 - Targeted financial sanctions related to terrorism and terrorist financing
- R.7 - Targeted financial sanctions related to proliferation

#### Largely Compliant Recommendations
- R.8 - Non-profit organizations
- R.9 - Financial institution secrecy laws
- R.10 - Customer due diligence
- R.13 - Correspondent banking
- R.14 - Money or value transfer services
- R.15 - New technologies: risk assessment and mitigation
- R.17 - Reliance on third parties
- R.19 - Higher-risk countries
- R.22 - DNFBPs: beneficial ownership information
- R.23 - DNFBPs: risk assessment and mitigation
- R.33 - Statistics
- R.34 - Guidance and feedback
- R.37 - Mutual legal assistance

#### Compliant Recommendation
- R.11 - Record keeping (insufficient but addressing)

#### Not yet assessed recommendations
- R.1 - Methodology: International cooperation (Article 41)
- R.13 - Correspondent banking: risk assessment and mitigation

Belgium’s Progress and Challenges

The FATF evaluation highlights several areas where Belgium has made progress in combating financial crimes, such as money laundering and terrorist financing. However, it also identifies specific challenges:

Correspondent banking: Ensuring effective risk assessments and mitigation measures to prevent the use of Belgian institutions for money laundering and terrorist financing activities.
Targeted financial sanctions related to terrorism and terrorist financing: Improvements are needed in the implementation of targeted financial sanctions to comply with international standards.
International cooperation: Strengthening bilateral and multilateral arrangements in mutual legal assistance and information exchange.

FATF Evaluation: Opportunities for Continuous Improvement

A spokesperson from the Belgian Financial Services and Markets Authority (FSMA) commented on the FATF evaluation process and opportunities for continuous improvement:

“The FATF evaluation process provides valuable insights and opportunities for continuous improvements. We will closely collaborate with our partners to address the weaknesses identified and strengthen our frameworks against financial crimes.”

Belgium is committed to implementing the FATF recommendations fully to maintain the international community’s confidence in its financial system and protect the integrity of its economy.