Press Release: “Updates Related to Anti-Money Laundering and Combating Financing of Terrorism” is the Subject of an Awareness Workshop by the CMA

Title:Press Release: "Updates Related to Anti-Money Laundering and Combating Financing of Terrorism" is the Subject of an Awareness Workshop by the CMA

Kuwait, June 29, 2022 - Within the framework of the Capital Markets Authority's (CMA) pursuit to perform its awareness role related to securities activities in general, and on the level of the updates related to anti-money laundering and combating financing of terrorism in particular, and based on its commitment to inform the entities subject to its supervision of those updates in order for them to comply with the current legislations and avoid violations, and not to be held accountable or be subject to the set measures and penalties; the CMA has held an awareness workshop covering the most prominent recent updates and amendments related to anti-money laundering and combating financing of terrorism.

Moreover, the invitation of the workshop that was held at the CMA's headquarters for two consecutive days on June 28^th and 29^th was limited to the persons concerned with its subject from the compliance officers of the licensed persons that were distributed on the workshop's two days. The workshop was presented by Mr. Tareq Al-Jutaili, Manager of Anti-Money Laundering and Combating Financing of Terrorism Section - On-Site Supervision Department - Supervision Sector. He covered the subject through several aspects, starting with the recent amendments of Module Sixteen (Anti-Money Laundering and Combating Financing of Terrorism) of the Executive Bylaws of the CMA's Establishment Law, followed by a clarification of the provision of Article (33) of Law No. 106 of 2013 before presenting the notices related to anti-money laundering and combating financing of terrorism monitored by the CMA through its efforts related to on-site supervision tasks or the revision of the annual reports of the licensed persons on the same subject.

The workshop also clarified the mutual evaluation process that the State of Kuwait will be subject to by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) during the year 2023, which confirms the importance of this evaluation process whether to the CMA or the entities subject to its supervision. Then, the workshop presented the details of the mutual evaluation process stages which started with its introduction, followed by evaluating each of the technical compliance and effectiveness, as well as field visits by the evaluation team to several entities to prepare the draft report of the mutual evaluation process and discuss it before its approval and publishing. On the other hand, the implications of the securities sector according to the results of the mutual evaluation process was the last aspect discussed in the workshop before its conclusion with answering the enquiries of the participants.

Finally, it is worth noting that the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) is an international government organization established in 1989. It includes 37 member states and two regional organizations: the European Committee and the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (GCC). It is responsible for setting the standards and enhancing the effective implementation of the legal, regulatory, and operational measures for anti-money laundering and combating financing of terrorism, financing the proliferation of weapons and other threats related to the integrity of the international financial system. The FATF issues guidelines and recommendations on the best practice for the purpose of aiding the implementation of its standards.

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Notes to Editors:

The Capital Markets Authority was established pursuant to Law No. 7/2010, approved by the Kuwaiti Parliament in February 2010. Pursuant to the Law, the CMA shall regulate and supervise the securities activities, achieve transparency and fairness, observe listed companies' execution of Corporate Governance regulations, and protect investors from unfair practices which violate the CMA's Law.

Furthermore, the Law's provisions stipulate the supervision of mergers, acquisitions, and disclosure operations. The CMA also aims to provide awareness programs related to securities activities.

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