Mar.24, 2010, 3:52 AM, Source: The Kathmandu Post

KATHMANDU, March 24 -- Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) will increase its vigilance by issuing anti-money laundering directives to cooperatives requiring them to report transactions made of Rs. 1 million or more to the Financial Information Unit (FIU) under the central bank. After implementing similar provisions for banks and financial institutions, money transfer, casinos and money changers, the central bank is moving towards implementing similar provisions for cooperatives too. Given the growing transactions which run into billions of rupees, in the largely unregulated cooperative sector, the NRB is alarmed at the way funds deposited in the cooperatives are being used.

"Our proposal has been forwarded to the governor's office for final approval," said Dharma Raj Sapkota, director at the FIU of NRB. "We will issue them right after the governor's nod."

"The directives will be implemented for transactions made by depositors but not in the other types of transactions," Sapkota said. "The cooperatives will have to report to the FIU every seven days about transaction of Rs. 1 million or more."

The FIU is also planning to implement such provisions for insurance companies, stock exchange companies (Now Nepal Stock Exchange), businesses related to precious metals, auditors and others. The Money Laundering Prevention Act has allowed FIU to issue directives to these institutions.

The Paris-based Financial Action Task Force (FATF), an inter- governmental organisation of G20 accused Nepal recently of failing to correct its financial regime to curb money laundering and terrorism financing. Nepal is one of the 20 countries listed by FATF as nations seriously deficient in combating "anti-money laundering (AML) and financing of terrorism (CFT).

Nepal has provided political commitment to address the deficiencies but has largely failed to do so despite "some progress in improving AML/CFT regime", the task force had stated. It has also suggested more powers for the anti-money laundering agency to enable tougher action.

Meanwhile, NRB is also set to issue guidelines for cooperatives and other institutions under FIU supervision on how to identify suspicious transactions.

"We will issue these guidelines along with directives for the cooperatives," said Sapkota. "But, a separate guideline will be issued for the banks, financial institutions and other that have already come under FIU supervision."