New Delhi: India and the United States co-chaired the US-India Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism Dialogue, and agreed to improve cooperation and information sharing

The Dialogue took place on Wednesday here in the national capital. It was co-chaired by US Treasury Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, Brian Nelson and India's Revenue Secretary, Ministry of Finance, Sanjay Malhotra.

"On December 13, 2023, we, US Treasury Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian Nelson and Sanjay Malhotra, Revenue Secretary, Indian Ministry of Finance, reconvened and co-chaired the US-India Anti-Money Laundering/Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) Dialogue. The Ministry of Finance hosted the dialogue in New Delhi," read the joint statement of the US-India Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism Dialogue.

The joint statement stated that the India-US AML/CFT Dialogue is an effective forum for both countries to share perspectives and best practises on how to strengthen the collective efforts of both countries to address illicit finance risk across our countries and the international financial systems.

In forum sessions, the two countries discussed each country's experience with virtual assets and virtual asset service providers, given the focus area of both sides to promote responsible innovation while mitigating illicit finance risks.

Both parties recognised the pressing need to accelerate global implementation of AML/CFT standards for virtual assets, in line with the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) recommendations, to effectively address the issue of regulatory arbitrage, the statement read.

The participants also discussed each country's efforts to enhance transparency in beneficial ownership, including the implementation of beneficial ownership registries, tools to improve data quality, and verification of the information.

This is a crucial step in combating money laundering and other financial crimes, as it allows authorities to track the flow of funds and identify those who are ultimately responsible for them, the statement added.

India and the US discussed the current challenges each jurisdiction is facing with regard to sanctions implementation, as well as opportunities to improve cooperation and information sharing to better combat sanctions evasion and terrorist financing in the region and globally.

The two delegations also identified various areas in AML/CFT where India and the US can jointly work together and share experiences and best practices.

India and the US further agreed to convene the dialogue again next year to build on this week's productive discussions. They also agreed that in advance of next year's dialogue, ongoing technical-level discussions will continue to advance the priorities and identify additional areas for cooperation.

"Finally, we agreed to pursue opportunities to enhance coordination and cooperation bilaterally and multilaterally, including working together within the FATF," the statement read.

"Reconvening and co-chairing the India-US AML/CFT Dialogue reaffirms the commitment of India and the United States to work jointly to address illicit finance risk in the international financial system," it added.