Oman’s financial regulatory authority responsible for capital markets, Capital Market Authority (CMA) has signed a cooperation deal with the National Centre for Financial Information (NCFI) in order to work together to combat money laundering and terrorist funding.
The agreement will facilitate progress in both parties’ coordination of efforts and performance governance, as well as the discovery of best practices for countering money laundering and terrorism funding as well as the holding of specialized workshops.
CMA said in a statement that, “The program aims to identify the joint cooperation, coordination of efforts and governance of performance between the two entities through sharing information and expertise and best practices in combating money laundering and terrorism financing crimes and the violations and crimes of the entities regulated by the CMA, as well as cooperation in workshops and training programs.”
According to the statement, NCFI deals with receiving, requesting, and analyzing reports and information suspected of being linked to the proceeds of crimes related to money laundering and terrorism financing, in line with the powers conferred by the Anti Money Laundering and Combating Financing Terrorism Law No. 30/2016.
Through the agreement, the CMA aims to improve its regulatory processes to deal with situations involving money laundering and terrorism funding in the capital market and insurance sectors.
In 2020, the CMA has established a department to combat money laundering and terrorism financing, which will communicate with appropriate local and international authorities and lay down guidelines for countering and raising awareness.
As per the statement, “The Anti-money Laundering and Combating Terrorism Financing Department of CMA conducts inspection and audit, sets standards for risk measurements, sets monitoring procedures and remedial measures, alerts the institutions and employees, analyzes the data and reports issued by the Capital Market and Insurance institutions at the same time acts as the contact point between CMA and its counterparts inside and outside the Sultanate while supporting efforts of the international community.”
