The National Anti Money Laundering Committee is hosting its Third Annual Conference For Anti Money Laundering And Combating Financing Of Terrorism. It's happening at the Civic which was crowded with financial sector employees, government regulators and others.
Based on the January 2025 Caribbean Financial Action Task Force report, Belize is a global leader in anti-money laundering achieving "Fully Compliant or Largely Compliant" ratings on all 40 Financial Action Task Force recommendations. Today we spoke with Special Counsel at the Financial Services Commission who explained why these events are important.
Franco Destro, Special Counsel FSC
"I think an event like this is very important for professionals and for Belize for two reasons. For professionals it's an opportunity to exchange views on a topic that is clearly very important for the financial industry. And for Belize because by reflection it allows the educational level of professionals in Belize to rise."
"Opportunities like this one where you meet other people who work in the industry from different parts of the world. It exposes you to different perspectives. I'm a big believer in diversity of point of views to make the industry a better place. So, yeah, this is a perfect place."
"The area that I cover, I made one presentation this morning and I'm about to give the second one early this afternoon."
"It's about digital assets and how Belize is in the process of considering legislation for digital assets. And so I share with the audience some of the thinking that the government is currently undertaking in this area."
"I think obviously a conference like this and AML and CFT in general, they focus very much on the international aspect of the industry, which is for anti-money laundering is an essential factor to take into consideration. So, yeah, I think the international component, the opportunity for people from different backgrounds and different parts of the world to come here and share their experiences."
The event will end tomorrow.
