The UAE and Saudi Arabia, the two largest economies in the Arab world, are stepping up efforts to enhance anti-money laundering rules and employ knowledge transfer to combat terrorism financing.
Dr. Fahd bin Abdullah Al-Mubarak, Governor of the Central Bank of Saudi Arabia and Chairman of the Anti-Money Laundering Permanent Committee, received the UAE official delegation headed by Ahmed Ali Al Sayegh, Minister of State, and Khaled Mohammed Balama, Governor of the Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE).
Furthermore, the meeting was attended by Ayman bin Mohammed Al-Sayari, Deputy Governor of the Saudi Central Bank, and representatives of various governmental agencies in the Kingdom. The visit was part of the UAE’s continuous efforts to boost anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-terrorist financing (CFT) operations.
Ahmed Al Sayegh Minister of State UAE
“The visit of a high-level delegation of experts from the UAE comes within the framework of enhancing cooperation with our strategic partners, led by the brotherly Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, in addition to exchanging experiences and expertise as part of effective communication with the relevant Saudi governmental agencies.”
The UAE has established an agency this year to track down money launderers and individuals suspected of funding terrorism and organized crime. The Central Bank regularly issues guidelines on how companies can assess money laundering risks.
Further, the banking regulator and Egypt’s Central Bank struck an agreement to tighten oversight of regulated financial organizations such as banks, financing firms, and foreign exchange enterprises. The regulators also agreed to share confidential information in order to avoid money laundering and terrorism financing.
Last month, the UAE and the UK have completed a two-week workshop that looked at methods to improve standards for detecting and combating money laundering while also limiting the movement of funds and commodities for illicit purposes.
