Velasco: House committed to amend to anti-money laundering law

MANILA, Philippines — The House of Representatives is committed to amend the Anti-Money Laundering Act, Speaker Lord Allan Velasco assured Sunday.

Velasco said the House is committed to pass House Bill No. 6174, which would address concerns with the anti-money laundering law.

“Cognizant of the importance to put in place more stringent provisions in AMLA, the House will see to it that the measure which aims to curb the cost of doing financial transactions of our overseas Filipino workers and the business sector, will be approved expeditiously once plenary sessions resume next month,” he said in a statement.

Meanwhile, the proposed Financial Institutions Strategic Transfer or FIST Act, on the other hand, has been approved on third and final reading by the larger chamber last June.

Velasco said the House assures that President Rodrigo Duterte will be able to sign the said measures into law “at the soonest possible time.”

Majority Leader Martin Romualdez said the House will “work harder, smarter, and more efficiently” once session resumes on Nov. 16.

“As part of our tradition, we are going to hit the ground running to pass vital pieces of legislation,” Romualdez said in a separate statement.

House Bill No. 6174 is still pending at the committee level.

JE