22 August 2017
By Masa Kanaan 

AMMAN — Jordan has ranked top among Arab countries in terms of fighting money laundering and terrorism financing. 

According to the Basel AML Index 2017, which assesses country risk regarding money laundering/terrorism financing, Jordan recorded an overall score of 4.9 out of 10, which puts the country in the 111th place on a list of 146 countries examined by the Basel Institute on Governance (three other countries were excluded due to incomplete data). 

The score indicates the country's risk level in money laundering/terrorist financing based on its "adherence to AML/CTF standards and other risk categories such as financial regulations, public transparency, corruption and rule of law”.

Compared to the 145 countries that are listed throughout the assessment, Jordan, with its risk score of 4.9, stood between Finland, which ranked 146 with an overall score of 3.04 (lowest risk), and Iran, which ranked number one with an overall score of 8.6 (highest risk). 

According to the AML index, Jordan had a risk level in money laundering/terrorist financing that was lower than the other Arab countries that have been listed. 

Saudi Arabia scored 5.43 and ranked 93, while Kuwait recorded 5.53 and ranked 90, and Lebanon scored 7.07 and ranked 27.

The assessment is aggregated from factors that include corruption level, financial standards, transparency, political rights and rule of law.

The annual AML report serves to provide a starting point for examining progress over time for a “complex and multidimensional issue” like money laundering and terrorist financing. 

In a statement to Petra, Central Bank of Jordan Deputy Governor Adel Sharkas said that the achievement was the fruit of collective efforts by oversight agencies involved in drafting regulations governing money laundering and financing terror activities.


© Jordan Times 2017