Financial Crime World

Cambodia’s Compliance with FATF Standards: A Report

Recommendations 12 and 33 Analysis

Recommendation 12: Beneficial Ownership and PEPs

Criterion 12.1 - Defining Beneficial Ownership

  • Met: However, deficiencies remain in defining beneficial ownership.
  • Key issues:
    • Lack of clear definition of beneficial ownership
    • Inconsistent application across financial institutions (FIs)

Criterion 12.2 - Extending PEP Definition to Domestic and International Individuals

  • Partially Met: Cambodia has extended the definition of Politically Exposed Persons (PEPs) to domestic and international individuals with prominent functions in an international organization.
  • Key benefits:
    • Improved risk assessment and mitigation for FIs
    • Enhanced transparency in financial transactions

Criterion 12.3 - Relevance Requirements for Family Members or Close Associates of PEPs

  • Partially Met: Relevant requirements are applied to family members or close associates of all types of PEPs.
  • Key challenges:
    • Inconsistent application across FIs
    • Limited guidance on specific requirements

Criterion 12.4 - Determining Beneficiaries or Beneficial Owners of Life Insurance Policies as PEPs

  • Partially Met: There is no explicit requirement for FIs to take reasonable measures to determine whether beneficiaries or beneficial owners of life insurance policies are PEPs.
  • Key issues:
    • Lack of clear guidance on identifying PEPs in life insurance policies
    • Inconsistent application across FIs

Recommendation 33: Statistics and Information Sharing

Criterion 33.1(a) - Maintaining Statistics on STRs, Incoming and Outgoing Requests, and Spontaneous Disseminations

  • Met: CAFIU maintains statistics on Suspicious Transaction Reports (STRs), incoming and outgoing requests, and spontaneous disseminations.
  • Key benefits:
    • Improved risk assessment and mitigation for FIs
    • Enhanced transparency in financial transactions

Criterion 33.1(b) - Providing Statistics on ML Investigations, Prosecutions, and Convictions

  • Partially Met: Cambodia has provided statistics on Money Laundering (ML) investigations, prosecutions, and convictions between 2017 and 2020.
  • Key challenges:
    • Limited data availability
    • Inconsistent reporting

Criterion 33.1(c) - Maintaining Comprehensive Statistics on Property Frozen and Confiscated by the MOJ

  • Partially Met: Cambodia maintains comprehensive statistics on property frozen and confiscated by the Ministry of Justice (MOJ).
  • Key benefits:
    • Improved risk assessment and mitigation for FIs
    • Enhanced transparency in financial transactions

Criterion 33.1(d) - Providing Comprehensive Statistics on MLA Requests Sent and Received

  • Partially Met: Cambodia has provided comprehensive statistics on Mutual Legal Assistance (MLA) requests sent and received between 2018 and 2020.
  • Key benefits:
    • Improved risk assessment and mitigation for FIs
    • Enhanced transparency in financial transactions

Weighting and Conclusion

For Recommendation 12, Cambodia is rated “Largely Compliant” due to deficiencies in defining beneficial ownership and specific requirements for identifying PEPs in life insurance policies.

For Recommendation 33, minor shortcomings remain in maintaining statistics for seizures, informal cooperation, and Terrorist Financing (TF) investigations. However, these deficiencies are weighted as minor, taking into account Cambodia’s overall compliance efforts.