The property guide 2021 | Page 46

REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT 2021
Why was Mauritius blacklisted by the FATF in October 2020 ?
This is the result of two correlated occurrences . Firstly , the decision of the Financial Action Task Force ( FATF ) in February 2020 to place Mauritius on the list of “ jurisdictions subject to enhanced scrutiny ” and secondly , the subsequent publication by the EU of a revised methodology for the identification of high-risk third countries .
Factors considered to be impediment by the FATF :
1 .
Failure in terms of risk management
2 .
Lack of means to identify beneficial owners
3 .
Inability of law enforcement to conduct money laundering investigations ,
including parallel financial investigations
4 .
Lack of adequate risk management procedures for non-profit
organisations
5 .
Failure to demonstrate adequate implementation of financial sanctions
through awareness campaigns and monitoring
Despite these limitations , the country has consistently demonstrated its commitment to greater transparency and oversight-as evidenced by its compliance with what is commonly referred to in the industry as the FATF ’ s “ Six Core Recommendations ”, covering prosecution of the money laundering offence , criminalisation of the terrorist financing offence , implementation of a financial sanctions framework , customer due diligence , and record keeping and reporting of suspicious transactions .
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