New AMLC executive director named

MANILA, Philippines — The Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) has named Matthew David as the new executive director of the AMLC Secretariat, replacing Mel Georgie Racela, whose term ended last Wednesday.

Under Section 8 of Republic Act 9160 or the Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2001, as amended, the AMLC is authorized to establish a secretariat to be headed by an executive director, who shall be appointed by the Council for a term of five years.

The executive director must be a member of the Philippine Bar, at least 35 years of age, and of good moral character, unquestionable integrity, and known probity.

Previously, David served as director of the Investigation and Enforcement Department of the AMLC Secretariat and as deputy director of the Office of the General Counsel and Legal Services at the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).

David also taught law at Arellano University and Our Lady of Perpetual Help University.

David holds a Master of Laws degree in Finance from the Institute for Law and Finance at the Goethe-Frankfurt University in Germany. He obtained his degrees in Bachelor of Laws and Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of the Philippines in Diliman, Quezon City.

David will have his hands full as the Philippines has been retained in gray list of the Paris-based Financial Action Task Force (FATF).

Since its re-inclusion in the gray list in June last year, the Philippines made a high-level political commitment to work with the FATF and Asia Pacific Group on Money Laundering (APG).

Last June, the FATF retained the Philippines in its ‘gray list’ as it stressed the need for the country to further strengthen its action plan to address strategic deficiencies in their regimes to counter money laundering, terrorist financing, and proliferation financing.

The AMLC is confident the Philippines would be removed from the gray list of the global dirty money watchdog on or before January 2023 as the country has committed to resolve swiftly the identified strategic deficiencies within agreed timeframes.

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The article was originally published in PhilStar Global and written by Lawrence Agcaoili.