MANILA, Philippines — The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has been recognized by the Office of the President for its role in the successful exit of the Philippines from the gray list of global financial crimes watchdog Financial Action Task Force (FATF).
The SEC was among several government agencies recognized by President Marcos and the National Anti-Money Laundering, Counter-Terrorism Financing, Counter-Proliferation Financing Coordinating Committee (NACC) for their active participation in facilitating and operationalizing action plans to enhance the country’s anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing (AML/CFT) framework.
The SEC was acknowledged for implementing reforms in the corporate sector that were crucial in enhancing the country’s AML/CFT framework.
“It is an honor to be recognized by no less than the President for our efforts in the milestone exit from the FATF gray list last February. This serves as a testament to our hard work and commitment to enhance and uphold financial integrity in the Philippines, especially in the corporate sector,” SEC chairman Emilio Aquino said.
The Philippines successfully exited the gray list last February after nearly four years, or since its inclusion in June 2021.
The FATF issued an action plan to improve the Philippines’ AML/CFT framework following the country’s inclusion in the gray list.
It includes addressing concerns on beneficial ownership, non-profit organizations, regulation of designated non-financial businesses and professions as well as casino junkets.
To meet the action plans, the SEC, on its end, strengthened beneficial ownership data disclosure of companies through the issuance of a revised general information sheet as early as 2019.
It also prohibited the issuance and sale of bearer shares and bearer share warrants in 2021 to boost transparency and prevent the use of corporations for illegal activities.
The commission likewise implemented an amnesty program in 2023 to urge companies to comply with the submission of reportorial requirements, resulting in a sharp increase in compliance rate to 69 percent in February 2025 from 26 percent in 2021.
Further, the SEC took charge of enhancing transparency among non-profit organizations to ensure that they will not be subject to terrorist financing.
Unregistered non-profit organizations were encouraged to incorporate with the SEC, resulting in the registration of nearly 8,000 non-profit organizations since 2021.
The SEC, however, is not resting on its laurels as it intends to sustain reforms and continue addressing emerging risks in the country’s AML/CFT framework to keep the country out of the gray list.
Aquino said that the next two years will be crucial for the country as it gears toward the next round of mutual evaluation for the assessment of our AML/CFT framework.
“The SEC remains steadfast in its commitment to leverage innovation to enhance transparency in the corporate sector and to strengthen its enforcement and monitoring capabilities to ensure that companies are not misused for illicit activities,” he said.