The International Monetary Fund Calls for Iran to Approve Anti-Money Laundering Regulations

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) states that Iran must adopt policies to maintain macroeconomic stability in the face of renewed U.S. sanctions. Jerry Rice, the IMF spokesperson, said in a press conference on Thursday, November 1, that Iran's GDP is expected to decline due to sanctions and reduced oil exports. According to Reuters, he mentioned that the IMF has advised Iran to implement anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing measures before the February 2019 deadline set by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). The FATF expressed regret on October 19 that most of Iran's commitments remain unresolved, while extending Iran's suspension from its blacklist for another four months. This international body against money laundering and terrorism financing stated that Iran has until February to either align with global standards or face consequences. Rice noted that U.S. sanctions will harm Iran's GDP due to falling oil exports. The IMF had previously predicted that Iran's GDP would decrease by 1.4% this year, with inflation reaching 29.6%. What sanctions will be reimposed starting November 5? U.S. oil sanctions will be implemented on November 5, with oil accounting for 60% of Iran's total exports, and its decline will complicate the country's foreign exchange revenues. The IMF predicts that Iran's economy will shrink by 3.6% next year, with inflation exceeding 34%. Until two years ago, Iran was on the FATF blacklist alongside North Korea, but after reaching a nuclear agreement known as the JCPOA with six world powers and accepting commitments from Tehran, the special measures against Iran were temporarily suspended. Being on this blacklist effectively deprives the country of services from a large number of foreign banks and financial institutions. For about two years, the Islamic Republic government has sent four bills to the parliament to align its laws with FATF standards and exit the blacklist: amendments to the counter-terrorism financing law, amendments to the anti-money laundering law, accession to the Palermo Convention on Transnational Organized Crime, and accession to the International Convention for the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism (CFT). Among these four bills, only the first (amendment to the counter-terrorism financing law) has passed all legislative stages and has been enacted by the President. The other three bills have been approved by the parliament but have not yet cleared the complexities of the Guardian Council and the Expediency Discernment Council.