Financial Crime World

Title: Saint Lucia Making Strides in Money Laundering Prevention, FATF Report Shows

According to the recent Mutual Evaluation Report by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) released in 2021, the Caribbean island nation of Saint Lucia is making significant strides in implementing measures to prevent money laundering and terrorism financing.

Overview of FATF Report

The report, which reflects the extent to which Saint Lucia has adopted the technical requirements of the FATF Recommendations, demonstrates the following findings:

  • Risk assessment and application of a risk-based approach: Partially Compliant (PC)
  • National cooperation and coordination: Partially Compliant (PC)
  • Money laundering offenses: Partially Compliant (PC)
  • Confiscation and provisional measures: Largely Compliant (LC)
  • Terrorist financing offenses: Partially Compliant (PC)
  • Targeted financial sanctions related to terrorism and terrorist financing: Non-Compliant (NC)

(The remaining Recommendations R.7 to R.40 are also evaluated but not shown here for brevity)

Areas of Progress

The evaluation shows that Saint Lucia has progressed in several areas, including:

  1. Risk assessment and application: Saint Lucia is improving its overall risk assessment capacities and aligning its approach more closely to a risk-based one.
  2. National cooperation: Improved coordination among key agencies involved in money laundering and terrorism financing prevention.
  3. Anti-money laundering offenses: There are improved legal frameworks for targeting money laundering activities and stronger penalties for offenders.
  4. Beneficial ownership transparency: Saint Lucia is enhancing its efforts to improve transparency in the ownership of legal persons and arrangements.

Challenges Ahead

Despite the partially compliant ratings in several areas, the report indicates that Saint Lucia is actively working to address the following concerns:

  • Targeted financial sanctions: Upgrading regulatory framework and ensuring effective implementation of targeted financial sanctions.
  • Financial intelligence units: Improving the functionality, analytical capacity, and coordination of the Financial Intelligence Unit.
  • Mutual legal assistance: Strengthening the procedures for requesting, executing, and replying to mutual legal assistance requests.

FATF’s Assessment and Next Steps

The FATF assessment is a significant achievement and demonstrates Saint Lucia’s commitment to improving its regulatory environment. However, continued efforts will be essential to ensure sustained progress and maintain the international community’s trust in Saint Lucia’s financial regulatory system.

The next Mutual Evaluation will be conducted in 4-5 years to assess the progress made in addressing the recommendations identified in the current report. The FATF will work closely with Saint Lucia during this period, providing guidance and support as needed.