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Jordan’s Fight Against Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing: A Mixed Bag

Amman, Jordan - In a latest report, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has evaluated Jordan’s efforts to combat money laundering and terrorist financing. While the country has made significant progress in some areas, it still faces challenges in others.

Deprivation of TF Assets and Instrumentalities

The FATF report highlights Jordan’s success in implementing measures to deprive terrorists of their assets and instrumentalities. The country has shown a strong commitment to freezing and confiscating terrorist-related assets, and has also taken steps to prevent the misuse of legal persons and arrangements for terrorist financing purposes.

Consistency with Overall Risk Profile

However, the report also notes that Jordan’s measures may not be fully consistent with its overall risk profile. The country faces significant risks from money laundering and terrorist financing due to its geographic location and financial sector vulnerabilities.

Immediate Outcome 11: Financial Sanctions

The FATF has identified several areas where Jordan needs to improve its implementation of financial sanctions related to proliferation financing. The country must ensure that it implements these measures promptly and effectively, and that they are fully aligned with international standards.

Recommendations for Improvement

To address the remaining gaps, the FATF has made a number of recommendations to Jordan. These include:

  • Assessing risks and applying a risk-based approach
  • Enhancing national cooperation and coordination
  • Strengthening its legal framework to combat money laundering and terrorist financing

Additionally, the report highlights the need for improvement in several areas, including:

Recommendations for Improvement (continued)

  1. Money Laundering Offense: Enhance legal framework and enforcement mechanisms
  2. Confiscation and Provisional Measures: Strengthen legal framework and implementation
  3. Terrorist Financing Offense: Enhance legal framework and enforcement mechanisms
  4. Targeted Financial Sanctions related to Terrorism and Terrorist Financing: Implement promptly and effectively
  5. Targeted Financial Sanctions related to Proliferation: Implement promptly and effectively
  6. Non-Profit Organizations: Enhance reporting and monitoring requirements
  7. Financial Institution Secrecy Laws: Reform to enhance transparency and cooperation
  8. Customer Due Diligence: Strengthen requirements for financial institutions
  9. Record-Keeping: Improve record-keeping requirements for financial institutions
  10. Politically Exposed Persons: Enhance due diligence and reporting requirements
  11. Correspondent Banking: Implement robust due diligence and monitoring requirements
  12. Money or Value Transfer Services: Enhance reporting and monitoring requirements
  13. New Technologies: Monitor and address emerging risks and vulnerabilities
  14. Wire Transfers: Improve reporting and monitoring requirements
  15. Reliance on Third Parties: Enhance due diligence and monitoring requirements
  16. Internal Controls and Foreign Branches and Subsidiaries: Implement robust internal controls and monitoring requirements
  17. Higher-Risk Countries: Enhance due diligence and monitoring requirements for transactions with higher-risk countries
  18. Reporting of Suspicious Transactions: Improve reporting and monitoring requirements
  19. Tipping-Off and Confidentiality: Enhance protection of whistleblower information and prevent tipping-off
  20. DNFBPs: Customer due diligence, reporting, and other measures to combat money laundering and terrorist financing
  21. Transparency and Beneficial Ownership of Legal Persons: Implement robust transparency and beneficial ownership requirements

In conclusion, while Jordan has made significant progress in combating money laundering and terrorist financing, it still faces challenges in some areas. To fully address these risks, the country must implement the FATF’s recommendations and continue to work towards a more robust and effective anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing regime.