New Delhi
The Mutual Evaluation Report (MER) on India will be released by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) on September 19. Mutual evaluations are conducted every ten years, and India, a FATF member since 2010, is set to have its evaluation publicized. The MER was adopted during the FATF plenary in June 2024, held in Singapore.
India has been recognized for achieving a high level of technical compliance with FATF requirements. As a result, India has joined countries such as the UK, France, and Italy in the ‘regular follow-up’ category.
Being placed in this category benefits India by enhancing its reputation as a financially stable and secure nation, which can attract investment and improve access to international markets. It can also lower borrowing costs and improve cooperation with other countries in areas like counter-terrorism financing and asset recovery.
To be included in the ‘regular follow-up,’ a country must meet high standards, achieving favorable ratings in at least 33 out of 40 recommendations and 5 out of 11 immediate outcomes. Currently, 39 members belong to the FATF, with 133 countries reviewed so far. North Korea, Iran, and Myanmar are blacklisted, while several other countries remain on the grey list.
