On Thursday, former President of the Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI), Dr Shahid Rasheed Butt, said removing Pakistan from the European Union’s list of high-risk countries is a great achievement. He said that the development would positively impact the overall business environment; it would save time and cost for exporters, boost exports, and improve international borrowing capabilities.

Shahid Rasheed Butt said that Pakistan will now be able to explore new markets in the continent, and the Pakistani companies doing business with the 27-member bloc will not face additional regulatory requirements.

The new development would add to the comfort level of our business community and is will ease the cost and time of legal and financial transactions by Pakistani companies and individuals in the EU, he said.

The high-risk countries list includes nations that do not have a robust regulatory and legal system to prevent financial crimes and terror financing that could pose significant threats to the financial system.

When a country is added to the list, it is subjected to enhanced scrutiny and additional measures that increase business costs.

In line with last year’s FATF decision, the EU has decided to remove Pakistan from its list of countries with high risk regarding money laundering and financing of terrorism, which is a great achievement.

Now the EU has accepted that weaknesses in the country’s legal and regulatory systems have been upgraded, and Pakistan can now prevent financial crimes and terrorist financing, he said.

Mr Butt said that since friendly countries and international institutions are not ready to lend to Pakistan, authorities should facilitate exporters to earn foreign exchange for cash-strapped Pakistan.