Mauritius continues to attract foreign investments from abroad and remains a center of enviable repute as an International Financial Centre. Foreign investments into various luxurious real estate schemes are expected to pick up, going forward. The banking system is well funded and capital and liquidity safeguards are assessed to be safe and sound. The country’s foreign exchange reserves are adequate to provide much needed bulwark against shocks and stand at more comfortable levels than those of the country’s peers.
The country showcased its resilience as a center of excellence during the COVID-19 pandemic and even when its financial system had to navigate through tough times in 2020 and 2021 when it entered the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) List of Jurisdictions under Increased Monitoring (‘Grey List’); the EU List of High-Risk Third Countries (‘Black List’); and the UK List of High-Risk Third Countries. The country’s commitment towards strengthening its AML-CFT framework in 2021 and 2022 by enacting appropriate legal and risk-based regulatory and supervisory frameworks led to its eventual exit from these so-called Lists.
Going forward, ongoing institutional reforms aimed at strengthening the national AML-CFT framework and at enhancing surveillance by law enforcement agencies should help boost up investors’ confidence in the jurisdiction, especially in a context characterized by the country’s rapid incursion into the digital space.