A European parliamentary vote has reaffirmed the UAE’s position on the European watch list for money laundering and terrorism support, delivering a fresh setback to Abu Dhabi’s attempts to enhance its reputation, According to the European Parliament’s decision, both the UAE and Gibraltar will continue to be listed on the European Union’s roster of countries under scrutiny by the Financial Action Task Force, commonly known as the “grey list…”
Some members of the Financial Action Task Force’s International Cooperation Review Group, composed of experts in banking and financial crimes, have recently raised concerns. They noted that the UAE had not delivered on its promises, with particular doubts surrounding the reliability of the information supplied by the UAE for their evaluations, All continuing indicators confirm that the UAE still represents a haven for illicit transactions and money laundering crimes, amid government shortcomings in combating them, The UAE ranked second in the Arab world and 44th globally in money laundering crimes, according to a study issued by the Al-Zaytouna Center for Studies and Consultations, entitled: “Money Laundering in the Global Political Economy.”
The study showed that the extent of money laundering in the global economy is not as marginal as some believe, as many sources estimate that the percentage of money being laundered will reach between 3 to 5% of the total global gross domestic product in 2022, That is, approximately 3-5 trillion dollars, and this number exceeds the gross domestic product of all Arab countries.
The study revealed numerous specialized investigations documenting shortcomings in the performance of the International Financial Action Authority, the global regulatory entity tasked with combating money laundering, encompassing 187 countries in total, The study identified four main channels for money laundering: financial institutions, online commerce, electronic media represented by smart cards, electronic money transfers or cryptocurrencies, and in-kind asset channels.
