CFATF 56th Plenary and Working Group Meetings Outcomes

Photo from left to right: Members of the Head table of the CFATF- Ms. Ellisha George, Administrative Officer (CFATF Sec.), Lt. Colonel Edward Croft (Antigua and Barbuda), Ms. Avelon Perry, Financial Advisor (CFATF Sec.), Mr. Milangelo Brete, CFATF Deputy Chair (Aruba), Mr. Loxly Ricketts, Deputy Executive Director (CFATF Sec.), the Honourable Samuel Bulgin, KC, JP, CFATF Chair (Cayman Islands), Ms. Dawne Spicer, Executive Director (CFATF Sec.) and Ms. Cheryl-Ann Lister (Bermuda), CFATF Immediate Past Chair. 

Port-of-Spain, Trinidad and Tobago, 28th May 2023 to 1st June, 2023 – The Chairman of the CFATF, the Honourable Samuel Bulgin, KC, JP, Attorney General of the Cayman Islands, chaired the CFATF 56th Plenary and Working Groups Meetings held from 28th May, 2023 to 1st June, 2023.

The main issues dealt with by this Plenary were:

  1. Mutual Evaluations

Discussion of the Mutual Evaluation Report (MER) of the Commonwealth of Dominica:  The Plenary approved the MER of Dominica following discussions at both the CFATF Working Group on FATF Issues (WGFI) meeting and at Plenary. The report sets out the level of effectiveness of the country’s AML/CFT system and its level of compliance with the FATF Recommendations. The completion of the post-Plenary Quality and Consistency (Q&C) process is pending. 

  1. CFATF International Co-operation Review Group (ICRG) Matters (30th May 2023) 
  • Outcomes of the FATF ICRG February 2023 Working Group Meeting.
  • Status Report on the FATF ICRG process for Jamaica, Barbados, Cayman Islands, Haiti, Antigua and Barbuda, Turks and Caicos Islands, Saint Lucia, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Grenada, Suriname and Venezuela.
  • Discussion of the Follow-up Reports (FUR) – for information only:
    1. Trinidad and Tobago – 6th Enhanced FUR
    2. Barbados – 4th Enhanced FUR
    3. The Cayman Islands – 4th Enhanced FUR
    4. Haiti – 3rd Enhanced FUR
    5. Grenada – 1st Enhanced FUR
  • Update on the 4th Round Follow-up Process (Other Jurisdictions - The Bahamas, Jamaica, Antigua and Barbuda, Turks and Caicos Islands, St. Lucia, St. Kitts and Nevis, Suriname, Venezuela, Bermuda and Aruba).
  • Actions taken by the CFATF Members on the FATF Public Statements issued in October 2022 and February 2023.
  • Proposed mechanisms for ending the 4th Round Follow-Up reporting cycles for Members in the CFATF Follow-Up process.
    • The mechanisms were approved by the Plenary.
  • Presentation on the FATF and CFATF ICRG Procedures by DED Ricketts.
  1. Donor’s Forum (29th May 2023)
  • Report on CFATF members’ technical assistance and training needs.
    • Twelve (12) areas of priority needs were identified.
  • Presentation on technical assistance from EU Global AML/CFT Facility.
  • Presentation on technical assistance to AML/CFT Initiatives by the Inter-American Development Bank.
  • Presentation on The Bahamas’ Beneficial Ownership Regime from Office of the Attorney-General and the Ministry of Legal Affairs, The Bahamas. 

  1. CFATF Working Group on FATF Issues (WGFI) (29thMay 2023) 
  • Discussion of the Key Issues (KIs) of the Mutual Evaluation Report of the Commonwealth of Dominica.
    • One KI was approved by the WG, and another was discussed and approved at Plenary.
  • Presentation of FATF Working Group Meetings – February 2023.
  • An update on potential amendments to the CFATF MEVAL Procedures.
  • Updates on the Sub-working Group for WGFI Training. 

  1. CFATF Heads of FIU Forum (28th May 2023) 
  • Updates from the Egmont Group of FIUs from Regional representative for the Americas Region.
  • Presentation on combatting modern-day slavery – Finance Against Slavery and Trafficking (FAST).
  • Panel of Experts discussion on combatting modern-day slavery.
  • Presentation of paper on CFATF FIUs’ activities in the Region.
  • Presentation on virtual asset use in ML and illicit narcotic sales by FinCEN.
  • Information and updates on technical assistance and training from COPOLAD. 

  1. CFATF Risk Trends and Methods Group (CRTMG) (November 27th, 2022) 
  • Outcomes of the FATF RTMG meeting - June and October 2022.
  • Discussion of CRTMG Project Plan for May 2023 to November 2026.
  • Presentations on ‘de-risking’ by the Bankers Association of Trinidad and Tobago and the U.S. Department of Treasury.
  • Project updates –
    • Stocktaking exercise on ‘de-risking’ in the Caribbean region.
    • Potential Implications of a Hybrid Decriminalization Approach or Legislation of Cannabis on AML/CFT.
       
  1. Other Updates Received
  • During the reporting period December 2022 – May 2023, the CFATF 11thEDF Office undertook the following activities:
    • 1 Virtual Standards Training for Guyana was conducted from 9th – 13th January 2023.
    • 1 physical Pre-Assessment Training was executed in Belize over the period of 11th -13th January 2023.
    • 1 MEVAL Pre-Onsite Training of the Assessment Team for St Vincent & Grenadines was conducted in Trinidad between the February 27th and March 2nd
    • 1 Mutual Evaluation Mission for St Vincent & Grenadines was conducted during the period 20th-31st March 2023
  • To date, 23 training events with approximately 2,039 attendees were completed. All Standards Training events and all Pre-Assessment events were completed during the previous quarter.
  • Updates on the CFATF Assessors Database and the E-Learning Platform were given.
     
  1. CFATF Governance
  • For the period December 2022 to November 2023 the Chairmanship of the CFATF is held by The Cayman Islands represented by the Honourable Samuel Bulgin, KC, JP Attorney General of the Cayman Islands. The Deputy Chairmanship is held by Aruba represented by Milangelo Brete, Director of the Financial Intelligence Unit of Aruba. The position of Immediate Past Chair is held by Bermuda, represented by the Cheryl-Ann Lister, Acting Financial Secretary in the Ministry of Finance for the Government of Bermuda, which ensures the tripartite governance of the CFATF.

 

CFATF Secretariat

June 21st, 2023