The Cyprus Bar Association and the Unit for Combatting Money Laundering (MOKAS) have sent out circulars in view of MONEYVAL’s upcoming fifth evaluation round in Cyprus urging members and firms to prepare accordingly.
MONEYVAL – the Committee of Experts on the Evaluation of Anti-Money Laundering Measures and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) – is a permanent monitoring body of the Council of Europe.
MOKAS informed that MONEYVAL will visit Cyprus in May to evaluate and assess the overall compliance regime of the country. And that the evaluation is conducted on the basis of a single methodology and questionnaire for all EU countries.
The circular also noted that all relevant competent authorities and the government of Cyprus have been alerted of this evaluation. That is, banks, auditors, lawyers, corporate administration services, MOKAS, the Customs Office, Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Finance, and other bodies.
As for the Cyprus Bar Association’ circular, it noted that various measures and procedures to strengthen the level of compliance of its licenced practitioners within the framework of efforts to prevent money laundering and the financing of terrorism have been adopted.
And that the MONEYVAL team to come to Cyprus is expected to visit obliged entities – including law firms, law organisations and companies providing administrative services.
The Association the underlines that MONEYVAL’s assessment is of paramount importance for the country, the economy and the law profession. And it invites members to ensure that they are aware of all policies and measures that have been taken in the legal profession.
Read more:
https://in-cyprus.com/deutsche-searched-in-money-laundering-probe-over-panama-papers/
