THE Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (Ipophl) backed the call of the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) for foreign financial institutions to avoid wholesale de-risking in their bid to protect themselves against dirty money, saying such blanket moves could hurt Philippine businesses and nationals.
In addition, the Ipophl also asked foreign financial firms to not place “additional unnecessary scrutiny” on Philippine-related transactions.
“De-risking—the termination or restriction of business relationships with clients or avoidance of clients and businesses—could deprive Philippine businesses and nationals from financial services that can provide the means for their survival and recovery from this crisis,” Ipophl Director General Rowel S. Barba said in a statement on Monday.
Citing the Paris-based Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the IP agency said that the “de-risking approach could also push de-risked companies to pursue unregulated financing channels, potentially bringing more difficulties to the traceability of dirty money.”
Instead, the FATF encourages financial companies to implement the recommended risk management strategies.
“As member of the Financial Intelligence, Law Enforcement and Prosecution Sub-Committee [FILEPSC], Ipophl continues to strengthen the fight against counterfeiting and piracy, which have been identified as among the sources of money laundering and financing of organized criminal groups around the world,” Barba said.
The FILEPSC is a subcommittee of the National Anti-Money Laundering/Countering the Financing of Terrorism Coordinating Committee. This committee oversees the implementation of the National Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Financing of Terrorism Strategy (NACS), which was approved through Executive Order 68 in 2018.
Ipophl said it seeks to resume its dialogue with financial payment gateways and legal enforcement authorities (LEAs) this year.
The agency said they tackled the gaps in tracking the “dirty money” flow; onboarding processes that ensure legitimacy of partners and transactions; and IP crime investigations and enforcement during their last meeting in 2020.
“We look forward to continuing our partnership and synergy with payment gateways and LEAs to address these gaps,” Barba said.
The Ipophl official said they are also looking to develop a coordination mechanism with the National Privacy Commission to streamline data-sharing among Ipophl, payment gateways and LEAs.
He said such is key in addressing the IP crimes and taking action against perpetrators. “We hope to succeed in our collaboration goals this year and that our efforts contribute to the delisting of the Philippines from the FATF Grey List,” Barba concluded.