A delegation from the Financial Intelligence Units (FIU) of Trinidad and Tobago and the British Virgin Islands is holding talks with the government and other stakeholders as part of the country’s request to join the Egmont Group of the FIU.
The delegation is to provide a report to the Egmont Group in July 2023 in Dubai for consideration and if successful, this will enable Guyana to join the Egmont Group in early-2024.
As a global organization, the Egmont Group facilitates and prompts the exchange of information, knowledge, and cooperation amongst member FIUs, according to a statement posted on its official website.
It said it provides FIUs with a platform to securely exchange expertise and financial intelligence to combat money laundering, terrorist financing, and associated predicate crimes.
Financial intelligence units are required by international standards to exchange information and engage in international cooperation.
A government statement here said that the delegation Nigel Stoddard, the Acting Director of the FIU in Trinidad and Tobago, and his counterpart from the British Virgin Islands, Errol George, held talks with Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Anil Nandlall, S.C.
It said that the delegation commended Guyana on its current AML/CFT framework and the consistent exchange of information and cooperation within this domestic network. It also hailed Guyana’s FIU for executing Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) with almost all of its counterparts across the Caribbean and other key stakeholders.
The delegation also met with the Finance Secretary, the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU), the Customs Anti Narcotic Unit (CANU), the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), representatives from the Bank of Guyana, Guyana Securities Council and the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA). They are also scheduled to meet with reporting entities including the commercial banks and the Guyana Immigration Service.
Nandlall said he remains optimistic that the delegation’s visit and input will help to accelerate Guyana’s application to join the Egmont Group, as the country is becoming a sophisticated economy attracting large investments, underscoring the importance of creating a strong regulatory framework to protect its growing financial sector.
“Guyana’s joinder to this important international institution will significantly enhance its FIU institutional capability to access international platforms and to receive and be able to disseminate vital information and intelligence in relation to organised crime, terrorist financing, and other local and cross-border illicit activities,” the statement added.
Source : Guardian
