SUVA (Pacnews) — Four Pacific island countries remain on the global anti-money laundering list monitored by the Financial Action Task Force on Money Laundering.
Nauru, Niue, the Cook Islands and the Marshall Islands have said they will not comply with the FATF demands to terminate their offshore banking activities to combat money laundering.
The FATF report for the 2001-2002 period released on Friday shows that more than 50 countries have agreed to comply with their demands.
The FATF recommends these countries seek technical assistance from the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and the United Nations to accommodate losses caused by the anti-money laundering policies.
The report highlights an action plan demanding that the countries disclose information on the steps they were taking against terrorist financing, including relevant legislative changes.
FATF President Claire Lo said they were encouraged by the cooperation of these countries and were working toward a Sept. 1 deadline for other countries to join up.
Niue is the latest Pacific island country to be removed from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development’s “non-cooperative tax haven” list after it closed last month its offshore business companies registry, which had clients in Panama, Russia and Australia.
The move has deprived the country of around $708,330 in income usually collected from bank licensing and company registration fees.
Similarly, the Cook Islands government passed legislation earlier in February removing it from the OECD’s list of tax havens.
But it still remains on the FATF’s anti-money laundering list because it has retained its offshore banking business connections.
Pacific island countries that remain on the OECD’s tax-haven list are Nauru, Vanuatu and the Marshall Islands, who all face sanctions if they continue to refuse to comply with FATF/OECD policies.
