The bill, which was approved by the cabinet in a meeting on 20 April, was referred to the House two weeks ago. It is meant to set up an independent anti-money laundering unit affiliated to the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE).
The unit, which will also help in eliminating funding for terrorist operations, will be led by a council of trustees headed by a judicial official with at least 15 years of experience in cassation and appeal courts.
The council of trustees will include the prosecutor-general, the CBE’s deputy governor, deputy chairperson of the General Financial Supervisory Authority, head of the Cabinet’s Council of Advisers, a representative of the Egyptian Federation of Banks, an economic expert, and the unit’s executive director.
The bill also states that all financial institutions as well as leaders of non-financial professions and activities have to abide by the instructions of the anti-money laundering unit in line with international conventions and agreements in this respect. Violators will pay a fine ranging from EGP 100,000 to EGP 300,000.
The amendments will be up for discussion in a plenary session when the House meets on 22 May.
Meanwhile, the Legislative and Constitutional Affairs Committee approved on Sunday the 2022/23 budget and plan of the Ministry of Justice.
Chairperson of the committee Ibrahim El-Heneidy said the justice ministry was allocated EGP 1.25 billion to cover its development plan for the new FY 2022/23. Representatives of the justice ministry complained that the allocation is less than needed and should be increased by at least EGP 1 billion to cover employees' and renovation works at a number of courts.
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