Tom Powell
GIBRALTAR has been accepted into Moneyval, an anti-money laundering evaluation process, after four years of negotiations.
The government has announced its delight that Gibraltar will now be subject to the stringent evaluation processes and procedures.
Moneyval was launched in 1997 by the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe to assess the anti-money laundering measures in member states.
The Rock has been accused of being a centre for money laundering over the past few years, mostly by Spanish media and politicians.
Meanwhile, officials in Gibraltar and London have been working closely to have Gibraltar included in Moneyval’s evaluation.
Intensive negotiations which started in 2011 ended earlier this year when the UK formally approached the Secretary General of the Council of Europe to apply for Gibraltar. This application has now been formally accepted.
Finance minister Albert Isola said: “I cannot stress enough how important this achievement is for Gibraltar in the context of being seen to be at the forefront of two international cooperations.
“This is one of the key objectives that we set ourselves when elected and I am delighted that our participation in Moneyval has come to fruition.”
