ASTANA — Kazakhstan and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are strengthening cooperation in the fight against money laundering and terrorist financing. On October 28, the Financial Supervisory Agency held a meeting with a delegation of the UAE National Committee for Combating Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing and Financing of Illegal Organizations, led by Secretary General Hamid Al Zaabi.

Members of the Financial Supervisory Agency met with a delegation from the UAE National Committee for Combating Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism and the Financing of Illegal Organizations. Photo credit: Financial Surveillance Agency.

During the meeting, officials discussed prospects for cooperation in combating money laundering. They exchanged views on the digitalization of national risk assessment processes and methods to identify illegal use of virtual assets. The meeting participants discussed drug trafficking, professional money laundering and the return of illegally withdrawn assets, the agency’s press service reported.

Officials of the UAE and Kazakhstan agreed to contribute to improving the professional level of participants in the anti-money laundering system of Kazakhstan within the Association of Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialists money (ACAMS).

In June last year, Kazakhstan pass a mutual evaluation to comply with the international standards of the FATF (Financial Action Task Force) to combat money laundering, terrorist financing and proliferation financing. Kazakhstan has demonstrated the effectiveness of its system for combating money laundering and terrorist financing. This, in turn, will allow domestic companies to pass simplified scrutiny of cross-border financial transactions.

According to Kazinform, since the beginning of the year, the agency has finalized the investigation of 57 criminal cases regarding financial pyramids with losses totaling almost 20 billion tenge ($40.7 million) and around 21,500 depositors involved.