NRB seeks collective efforts to combat money-laundering

Kathmandu, Feb. 11

Governor of the Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) Prof. Dr. Biswo Nath Poudel has emphasised that a 'shared commitment' across all financial and regulatory sectors is the only way to effectively combat money laundering and financial crime.

Speaking at the inauguration of a two-day international conference on anti-money laundering in Kathmandu on Wednesday, he underscored the pressing reality of Nepal’s inclusion on the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) ‘Grey List’, the NRB informed in a statement.

The conference, titled 'Contemporary Issues Pertaining to Anti-Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT)', organised by the NRB’s Anti-Money Laundering Supervision Division brought together experts from India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Mongolia to share insights with Nepali officials from various ministries and government investigative agencies.

Governor Dr. Poudel asserted that the fight against financial crime is no longer the sole responsibility of a single agency. Instead, he said that success requires active participation of the banking sector, insurance companies, capital markets, and cooperatives.

"While being on the 'Grey List' presents a significant challenge, it has also provided us with an important lesson to strengthen our internal mechanisms and integrate them with global standards," Poudel said. He also expressed confidence that the conference would prove fruitful in rectifying existing weaknesses and adopting modern international practices.

According to the NRB, technical sessions on the first day included the current status of Nepal’s AML/CFT regime following the 2023 mutual evaluation, complexities of trade and service-based money laundering and necessity of consolidated supervisory perspectives.

On Thursday, the conference will deliberate on Mongolia's success story on how the nation moved from 'increased monitoring' (the Grey List) to successfully delisting by Nomichulun Batsukh from Mongolia’s Financial Regulatory Unit.

Other sessions will cover the use of data analytics in supervision by the Reserve Bank of India and the judicial perspectives of anti-money laundering efforts.

Organisers expect the conference to be results-oriented, ultimately leading to the sub-national strengthening of legal and policy frameworks. By following the best practices of neighbouring nations, Nepal aims to enhance its institutional capacity and ensure its financial systems are transparent, robust, and beyond reproach, said the NRB.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 12 February 2026.