The Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) has issued a circular to various entities, including Licensed Corporations and SFC-licensed Virtual Asset Service Providers, about recent statements and outcomes from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). The FATF has identified certain high-risk jurisdictions, such as Iran and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, as subject to countermeasures, and has called for enhanced due diligence measures for Myanmar since October 2022. The FATF has also highlighted jurisdictions under increased monitoring, such as Cameroon, Croatia, and Vietnam, and will monitor their progress in addressing strategic deficiencies in their AML/CFT regimes. Additionally, the FATF has released important updates, including its finalised targeted update on virtual assets and virtual asset service providers, a report urging quick implementation of the FATF Recommendation on virtual assets, an updated Best Practices Paper on Combating the Abuse of Non-Profit Organisations, and potential revisions to FATF Recommendation 8 for public consultation to protect non-profit organisations from potential terrorist financing abuse.
Resource:
https://apps.sfc.hk/edistributionWeb/gateway/EN/circular/aml/doc?refNo=23EC30