By 
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has issued a circular directing Deposit Money Banks and other financial institutions in the country to enhance monitoring of transactions involving businesses and individuals from Cameroon, Croatia, and Vietnam.
The circular, referenced as FPR/AML/PUB/BOF/001/029 and issued by Mr. Chibuzo Efobi, the Director of Financial Policy and Regulation, states that the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has recently placed these countries on its grey list.
The FATF is an international body focused on developing and implementing measures to combat money laundering, terrorist financing, and proliferation financing.
Countries under increased monitoring actively collaborate with the FATF to address strategic deficiencies in their frameworks for countering money laundering, terrorist financing, and proliferation financing.
The CBN also highlights that the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Iran, and Myanmar remain on the list of high-risk jurisdictions that require close monitoring by banks.
The circular states, “Enhanced due diligence should be applied, and in severe cases, counter-measures may need to be implemented to safeguard the international financial system.”
The CBN emphasizes that Russia remains suspended from the FATF, urging banks to maintain vigilance and be cautious of any risks associated with transactions involving the listed countries.
The statement further asserts, “Financial institutions are directed to take note of all additions to jurisdictions under ‘Increased Monitoring’ and high-risk jurisdictions subject to a ‘Call-for-Action’ and to implement necessary measures to effectively mitigate these risks.”
It is worth noting that Nigeria was previously grey-listed by the FATF in February of this year. However, the country’s efforts to address the identified deficiencies resulted in a significant reduction from 84 to 15 deficiencies, as acknowledged by the FATF.
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