Financial Action Task Force Removes Mauritius from Grey List

In a plenary session held on October 21st, the global terror finance watchdog, Financial Action Task Force (FATF), confirmed the removal of Mauritius from its list of jurisdictions under increased monitoring.  

Mauritius was initially placed on the FATF grey list in February 2020 due to strategic deficiencies identified by the FATF in its AML/CFT regime. This significantly weakened Mauritius’ position as a global financial jurisdiction as global investors and managers were deterred from investing in a country with weak systems to counter money laundering and terrorist financing.

Since then, the Mauritian government has made strong political commitments to actively work with FATF to address the identified deficiencies and restore its credibility as a compliant jurisdiction. FATF acknowledged that Mauritius’ action plan, which involved collaboration between government offices, regulatory authorities, and financial service providers, adequately strengthened the jurisdiction’s AML/CFT regime to the extent where it could be removed from the list of countries that require increased monitoring.

Mauritius’ removal from the FAFT grey list is certain to attract increased levels of foreign investment while further solidifying the country’s position as a jurisdiction of substance with robust legal and compliance frameworks.  

Sum Tze Sheng, Alter Domus’ Country Executive Singapore and Mauritius, commented on the development: “We are delighted that Mauritius has been removed from the FATF grey list. It is much welcomed news after many months of collaboration between the government, regulators, and service providers to strengthen the AML/CFT framework. We at Alter Domus Mauritius continue our unwavering support for the enhancement of Mauritius’ AML/CFT regime.”