NEWS: UAE remains on FATF ‘grey list’ but has made progress in addressing its AML issues, watchdog says

Regulatory Watch News

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  99th GRECO Plenary Meeting (17–19 March 2025)

  GRECO

  March 17, 2025

  GRECO will hold its 99th plenary meeting from 17 to 19 March 2025. During the session, the plenary will examine the evaluation report on Kazakhstan, assessing incriminations and political party funding. It will also review follow-up reports on preventing corruption and promoting integrity in central governments (top executive functions) and law enforcement agencies for Albania, Azerbaijan, Germany, the Netherlands, North Macedonia, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. Additionally, the plenary will consider follow-up reports on Portugal’s compliance with recommendations on preventing corruption among parliamentarians, judges, and prosecutors. Finally, the plenary will adopt the GRECO General Activity Report 2024.

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  Website Alert – Fraudulent website related to Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd.

  HKMA

  March 17, 2025

  The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) wishes to alert members of the public to a press release issued by Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd. relating to a fraudulent website, which has been reported to the HKMA.  A hyperlink to the press release is available on the HKMA website.

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  $11m assets forfeited as part of organised crime syndicate investigation

  Australia Federal Police

  March 17, 2025

  More than $11 million worth of assets, including Rolex watches, Cartier jewellery and art by Brett Whiteley has been forfeited to the Commonwealth as suspected proceeds of crime after an AFP-led Criminal Assets Confiscation Taskforce (CACT) investigation. The decision in the Supreme Court of Victoria grew out of AFP-led Operation Fuji, which focused on a large Middle Eastern organised crime syndicate's access to firearms, large-scale drug importation activity, and extensive wealth, as well as threats to life.