Money launderers could exploit Kuwait financial sector, IMF says

Dubai: Rapid growth of Kuwait's financial sector could create an attractive environment for money launderers and financers, the International Monetary Fund said in a report.

"Although there is currently no evidence of significant money laundering in the country, Kuwait's financial sector is growing rapidly in terms of banking sector assets," the IMF said in a report published on the fund's website www.imf.org.

"This development has the potential of creating a suitable environment for money launderers and financers to exploit," it said.

The Opec member introduced an anti-money laundering law in 2002 regulating financial institutions, but does not criminalise financing of terrorism. A new draft law was sent to the National Assembly in 2007 but has not yet been adopted.

Banking assets in Kuwait almost doubled over the past five years to 42.1 billion dinars (Dh567 billion) at the end of June, the central bank's data showed. The IMF also said Kuwait's anti-money laundering framework showed weaknesses in the preventive measures for financial institutions and a lack of supervision and monitoring.

Kuwait has long been urged to better regulate its financial markets and boost transparency and governance among investment firms.

Kuwait's first ever market regulator, the Capital Markets Authority, was launched in March.