With the objective of presenting the progress made by the Republic of Panama in terms of prevention of money laundering, financing of terrorism and financing of the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, the Minister of Economy and Finance of Panama, Héctor Alexander, held important meetings with executives and officials of the Kingdom of Belgium, the Commission of the European Union and the Federal Republic of Germany.
During the visit, the minister reiterated Panama’s commitment to national and international transparency in the fight against money laundering, highlighting the strengthening of the country’s entire prevention system, which also contributes to strengthening the financial system and the investment attraction.
He spoke with the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, Vincent Van Peterghem, on issues of strengthening synergy for customs administrations, growth and investment opportunities between both nations, the importance of recognizing Panama’s progress against international transparency and the future of new fiscal strategies and policies in the region.
In addition, they participated in a meeting with the director general of the European Investment Bank (EIB), Kim Jorgensen and his technical team, discussing various projects with the EIB, the economic boost generated by foreign investment in Panama, and the importance it gives Panama and the EIB to issues of sustainability and the environment.
In addition, the significant increase in supervision evidenced by Panama in the financial and non-financial sectors, the constant training given to all economic sectors of the country and public officials, on issues of prevention of money laundering. Likewise, the relevance of Panama in the international community and the vision of our nation regarding future development in other economic areas were recognized.
Additionally, they held a meeting with the former president of the FATF and current director at the federal finance ministry and head of the fight against Anti-Money Laundering/Fighting the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT), Marcus Pleyer, the financial sanctions policy and digital financial technologies and cybersecurity.
With Pleyer, they delved into the issues of technical compliance and Panama’s effectiveness in the face of progress in the process of exclusion from the FATF gray list. The Panamanian minister highlighted the importance that has been given to the issue, from the highest level, including the budgetary strengthening of all the institutions that make up the asset laundering prevention system of Panama, and the corporate clean-up process being carried out by the Republic.
To conclude the official mission, Minister Alexander and the technical secretary of CNBC, Vecchio, shared the vision of Panama regarding national and international transparency in the fight against these scourges, with Mairead McGuinness, Principal Commissioner of the European Services Commission Financial, Financial Stability and Capital Markets of the European Union, Panama’s commitment to not only complete the 15 actions of the FATF action plan during this year 2023, but also to continue working committed to international transparency. Panama and the European Union are in the same place and face the same commitment in the fight to prevent money laundering, financing of terrorism and financing of the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. Likewise, thanks were extended for the support received in technical assistance, which has allowed the strengthening of the technical capacities of country officials.
