Egypt’s Efforts to Combat Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing Receive Mixed Review

CAIRO - Egypt’s efforts to combat money laundering (ML) and terrorist financing (TF) have been deemed effective in some areas, but still face significant challenges.

Effective Measures

According to a recent report by the Middle East and North Africa Financial Action Task Force (MENAFATF), Egypt has made progress in implementing anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing measures. The country has:

• Established an independent unit to combat ML and TF
• Issued anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing regulations to entities under its supervision
• Regulated the cross-border movement of currency and bearer negotiable instruments (BNI)

Challenges

However, the report highlighted several areas where Egypt needs improvement:

Compliance Issues

Many financial institutions in Egypt fail to comply with anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing regulations, which hampers efforts to combat ML and TF.

Risk Assessment Deficiencies

Egypt’s risk assessment process is still evolving, and there is a need for more detailed and comprehensive assessments of the country’s ML and TF risks.

Coordination Challenges

There is a need for better coordination among national entities, including government agencies, law enforcement authorities, and supervisors of the banking and non-banking financial sector.

Progress in Implementing Targeted Financial Sanctions

The MENAFATF report also noted that Egypt has made progress in implementing targeted financial sanctions related to terrorism and terrorist financing, as well as proliferation. However, more needs to be done to ensure effective implementation of these measures.

Conclusion

While Egypt’s efforts to combat ML and TF are commendable, there is still much work to be done to address the country’s significant challenges in this area. Addressing these issues will require continued cooperation among national entities and international partners.