Pakistan exits terror funding watchdog FATF's 'grey list' after 4 years; can seek help for ailing economy

After 4 years of ignominy, Pakistan has finally managed to exit the 'grey list' of FATF, a global watchdog for terror financing and money laundering.

The decision was taken during the plenary of the Financial Action Task Force held in Paris, France on October 20 and 21, 2022. However, the FATF stated that Islamabad will have to continue working to improve its anti-money laundering, and combating financial terrorism (AML/CFT) regime.

In order to exit the 'grey list', Pakistan had to address deficiencies in its systems pointed out by FATF in 2018 and 2021. Islamabad had to complete a list of 34 action items in order to escape the fate of being placed in the 'black list'.

The development comes in the backdrop of Pakistan facing an economic crisis. Now, the country can try to get financial help from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the European Union (EU).