More than 170 inspection visits conducted

Muscat: The Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Investment Promotion (MoCIIP) carried out more than 170 inspection visits to the offices, accounting, auditing companies, and companies of precious metals and stones, which are subjected to the supervision of MoCIIP.

The inspection visits were carried at the governorates of Muscat, Dhofar, Al Batinah South and   Al Batinah North, in order to ascertain the extent of the commitment of the inspected entities by employing an employee to detect any suspicious transaction and for following the legislations related to combating money laundering and terrorism financing, as a compliance to the announcement published by the MoCIIP last August 2022.

This comes within the framework of the MoCIIP’s keenness to urge the relevant authorities and to facilitate the accounting, auditing offices and companies, and the companies of precious metals and valuable stones to comply with enforced rules, while the ministry has created an e-mail:  [email protected], for sending the requirements that it must be complied with, to its employees who are working in this field.

Abdul Hameed bin Mubarak Al Sheedi, a member of the Anti-Money Laundering, and the prevention of Terrorism Financing team   at the MoCIIP said: “The ministry continues its inspection campaigns at the  Governorates of Muscat, Dhofar,  Al Batinah South and  Al Batinah North, while  the campaign will include   the remaining governorates during the coming period. It aims at activating the control system related to combating Money laundering and terrorism financing and to emphasise the supervision on the entities that are subjected to the supervision of the regulatory authorities, in accordance with plans based on a risk-based approach, in order to ensure greater effectiveness of control and supervision, and to direct the available resources in an appropriate and direct manner to institutions of higher risk.

Abdul Hameed Al-Sheedi added: The licenced facilities include all accounting, auditing offices, companies, institutions and companies selling jewellery, crafting and importing precious metals and valuable stones, laboratories for examination and analysis of precious metals and valuable stones, and workshops for filtering precious metals.

He pointed out that,   the Ministerial Decision 198/2021 Issuing the Regulation on the Audit of Accountants, Auditors, Accounting and Auditing Offices and Companies, and Precious Metals and Valuables Gemstones Institutions and Companies regarding Combating Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing, Which defined the suspicious or unusual operations as operations that are suspected to be related to the crimes stipulated in the law,  has obligated the licenced establishment by appointing a compliance officer to monitor the compliance of the licensed facility and its employees with the requirements of the Anti-Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing Law.