Guatemala removed from money laundering blacklist

Guatemala removed from money laundering blacklist

Reuters Paris

The international body leading a campaign against money laundering said on Friday it had removed Guatemala from its blacklist of countries not taking adequate measures against dirty money.

Indonesia, the Philippines and Nigeria remained on the blacklist, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), a watchdog sponsored by the Group of Seven (G7) industrialized nations, said in a statement.

The Cook Islands, Myanmar and Nauru also stayed on the list of Non-Cooperative Countries and Territories (NCCTs).

"Guatemala has worked with FATF representatives to achieve a positive result, and the FATF will continue to monitor Guatemala's progress," FATF President Claes Norgren said in the statement.

Being blacklisted by the Paris-based FATF, whose 30 member countries are mostly Western states, can damage a country's prospects for attracting investment from abroad.

The FATF noted that Nigeria had recently enacted reforms but wanted to see evidence that the African state had implemented the anti-money laundering measures before removing it from the blacklist. The group invited Nigeria to submit a plan detailing how the reforms would be implemented.