Machibet777 Cricket Choking funds pipeline is key to beating terror

The deadly 9/11 terrorist attacks in the United States triggered a global war on fund flows to terrorist organisations, with governments across the world trying to grapple with one of the toughest challenges to peace and security.20 years on, the efforts continue as there is a recognition that choking the fund flows linked to terrorism is one of the most effective ways to deal with this scourge and prevent future attacks.“Countering terrorism financing is therefore an essential part of the global fight against terror threat. As terrorists and terrorist groups continue to raise money with use of various means, countries must make it a priority to understand the risks they face from terrorist financing and develop policy responses to all aspects of it,” the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), which has been leading global efforts against terror funding, has said. medium86034623FATF, the global money laundering and terrorist financing watchdog, was set up in 1989 at a Group of 7 (G7) summit in Paris. It was initially tasked with devising strategies to deal with money laundering. Since 2001, fighting terrorist financing has been its top priority and it supports countries across the world. It has also developed the framework for countries to deal with the issue of terrorist financing, recommending “the explicit inclusion of the need to criminalise the financing of travel for the purpose of the perpetration, planning, preparation of or participation in, terrorist acts, or providing or receiving terrorist training.”India, which has been a victim of terrorism for years, joined FATF in 2010 and has since then played an active role in the fight against terrorist financing. It raised the issue of counterfeit currency, prompting authorities across the world to focus attention on this menace. Information sharing between countries is at the heart of the fight against terror financing, and over the years a vast amount of information has moved across jurisdictions to help choke the funds flow. More than 200 countries and jurisdictions have committed to implementing the FATF recommendations.Threat from virtual assetsThe G20, a group of rich and emerging economies, has also thrown its weight behind FATF’s efforts to combat terrorist financing and has vowed to strengthen FATF’s global network of regional bodies for effective implementation of its standards.While several countries have taken effective steps to combat the menace, FATF acknowledged that there are several jurisdictions which are yet to fully understand the need to strengthen systems to accelerate the fight against money laundering and terrorist financing. medium86034642The Covid-19 pandemic has also increased the vulnerabilities. A report by FATF has said the pandemic “is impacting on the ability of government and the private sector to implement anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing (AML/CFT) obligations in areas, including supervision, regulation and policy reform, suspicious transaction reporting and international cooperation.” The swift changes in technology and the increase in virtual assets also pose a major risk. While acknowledging that virtual assets have several potential benefits, FATF has said, “without proper regulation, they risk becoming a virtual safe haven for the financial transactions of criminals and terrorists.” It said gaps in the global regulatory system have created significant loopholes for criminals and terrorists to abuse and for several countries, including India, the threat of misuse of virtual assets by criminals and terrorists is real. The changing nature of technology has added a new dimension to the fight against money laundering and terrorist financing.Also Read 85999800