The Bank of the Lao PDR, together with the Supreme People’s Prosecutor Office and international partners, convened a national conference on 25–26 March 2025 focused on implementing international standards relevant to anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing (AML/CFT), including governance, law enforcement, the judiciary and cross-border criminal cooperation, in the context of Lao PDR’s FATF grey-listing. More than 200 participants from relevant public and private sector bodies attended, with a panel discussion featuring experts from Thailand, Cambodia, the Philippines and Lao PDR on grey-list impacts and remediation. The conference highlighted the need to prioritise closing gaps identified in Lao PDR’s mutual evaluation, including running money-laundering cases in parallel with predicate offences, compiling and providing statistics and case examples on investigations, prosecutions and judgments, and on asset restraint, confiscation and recovery for timely international reporting, and strengthening international cooperation in criminal matters while preparing for potential impacts during the grey-list period.
Bank of the Lao 2025-03-25
Bank of the Lao PDR convenes national conference on strengthening AML/CFT and supporting exit from the FATF grey list
The Bank of the Lao PDR, with the Supreme People’s Prosecutor Office and international partners, held a national conference on implementing international AML/CFT standards amid Lao PDR’s FATF grey-listing. The event emphasized addressing gaps identified in Lao PDR’s mutual evaluation, such as parallel money-laundering cases, improved statistics and case examples, and enhanced international cooperation. Experts from Thailand, Cambodia, the Philippines, and Lao PDR discussed grey-list impacts and remediation strategies.