Financial Crime World

Uzbekistan’s Money Laundering Risk Assessment Revealed

In a recent assessment, Uzbekistan has been found to be “largely compliant” with many of the technical requirements set by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) in preventing money laundering and terrorist financing. However, there are areas where improvement is needed.

Evaluation Results

The assessment, which was conducted as part of the FATF’s mutual evaluation process, evaluated Uzbekistan’s implementation of 40 recommendations aimed at combating money laundering and terrorist financing. The country received a rating of “largely compliant” for many of these recommendations, including:

  • Assessing Risk and Applying a Risk-Based Approach (R.1)
  • National Cooperation and Coordination (R.2)
  • Financial Institution Secrecy Laws (R.9)

However, Uzbekistan was found to be only “partially compliant” in several areas, including:

  • Targeted Financial Sanctions Related to Terrorism and Terrorist Financing (R.6)
  • Targeted Financial Sanctions Related to Proliferation (R.7)
  • Transparency and Beneficial Ownership of Legal Arrangements (R.25)

The country was also deemed “non-compliant” in some areas, such as:

  • Regulation and Supervision of DNFBPs (R.28)
  • International Cooperation (R.37)

Key Areas for Improvement

The assessment highlighted several key areas where Uzbekistan needs to improve, including:

  • Strengthening Laws and Regulations: Strengthening the country’s laws and regulations to prevent money laundering and terrorist financing.
  • Enhancing Financial Intelligence Capabilities: Enhancing the country’s financial intelligence capabilities to better detect and prevent money laundering and terrorist financing.
  • Increasing International Cooperation: Increasing international cooperation with other countries to share information and best practices in preventing money laundering and terrorist financing.

Government Response

Uzbekistan’s government has welcomed the assessment and has pledged to work towards implementing the necessary reforms to strengthen its anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing regime.