Cayman Islands cleared from international blacklists
Published:Saturday | February 10, 2024 | 12:38 PM
GEORGE TOWN, Cayman Islands, CMC – The Cayman Islands has been removed from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) list of countries that are required to improve their anti-financial crime regimes.
This marks the first time in several years, that this British overseas territory does not appear on any international list that calls the jurisdiction's role in the global financial system into question.
On Wednesday, the territory was finally removed from the European Union's list of high-risk countries with anti-money laundering, countering the financing of terrorism and counter-proliferation financing deficiencies.
The Cayman Islands was blacklisted by FATF several years ago due to the weakness in the prosecution and sanctions regime surrounding financial crime.
However, it was removed after more than two years of diplomacy, changes to laws and the prosecution of Canover Watson and Bruce Blake in a scandal related to the regional football association, CONCACAF.
That triggered the delisting process for the EU list, as the blacklisting by the FATF was the main reason Cayman's financial sector found itself on the wrong side of the European Union rules.
The removal from controversial lists is expected to boost the offshore industry's fortunes.
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