Eastern Caribbean Central Bank 2024-2025 Annual Report

EASTERN CARIBBEAN CENTRAL BANK ANNUAL REPORT 2024 - 2025

Organisational Effectiveness and Development

banking sector. Additionally, the ECCB was part of the Montserrat delegation at the CFATF Plenary in November 2024, where the final report was presented for discussion and adoption. Stakeholder Engagements: The ECCB served and contributed to the National Anti-Money Laundering Oversight Committees (NAMLOC) on which it sits. NAMLOCs remains vigilant inmonitoring the efforts of agencies to address the outstanding deficiencies outlined in the 4 th round Mutual Evaluations (MEVAL) which assessed compliance, as the ECCU member countries prepare for subsequent CFATF follow ups and the 5 th round MEVALs, which will focus on effectiveness. The ECCB also continued to provide policy advice through its representatives on the boards of the Grenada Authority for the Regulation of Financial Institutions, the AML Commission in Grenada, the Financial Services Regulatory Commission in Saint Christopher (St Kitts) and Nevis, and the Financial Services Authority in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. Establishment of a Basic Bank Account: In November 2024, the ECCB issued a circular to all LFIs regarding the establishment of a Basic Bank Account. This initiative aims to support the unbanked and underserved citizens in the ECCU, as part of the ECCB’s broader strategy to foster financial inclusion and implement measures to uphold the soundness and integrity of the financial system. The circular, which forms part of the Ease of Account Opening Strategy, encourages LFIs to offer Basic Bank Accounts, as defined in the proposed amendments to the Banking Act.

knowledge of LFIs and national authorities across the ECCU. Additionally, the ECCB, in collaboration with the CFATF and IMF, produced and released a two-part series on Enhancing Beneficial Ownership Transparency, via its ECCB Connects programme. Advisories: The ECCB issued the following Advisories to inform and mitigate emerging ML/ TF/PF risk in the ECCU: ; Job Search Scams: In September 2024, the ECCB alerted LFIs about rising job search scams and advised of the importance of conducting assessments, providing staff training, and complying with reporting obligations; ; AML/CFT/CPF Deficiencies: In November 2024, theECCB informedLFIsof jurisdictions with AML/CFT/CPF deficiencies, as identified by the FATF. LFIs were encouraged to incorporate this information into their risk assessments and apply enhanced due diligence measures where applicable; and ; Typology Boat 360: In November 2024, the ECCB issued a typology alert detailing criminal activities involving small fishing vessels used for ML. LFIs were instructed to look for red flags and file suspicious activity reports where necessary. Strengthening the AML/CFT/CPF Supervisory Regime Mutual Evaluation Assessments: The ECCB contributed towards the completion of the Technical Compliance evaluation for Montserrat and participated in interviews with CFATF assessors, providing information on its supervisory and oversight functions withinMontserrat’s domestic

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