Gold hits new high of Rs 171, 300 per tola on Tuesday
The price of gold has increased by Rs 500 per tola in the domestic market on Tuesday.
According to the Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers’ Association, the precious yellow metal is being traded at Rs 171, 300 per tola today. It was traded at Rs 170, 800 per tola on Monday.
The price of silver, however, has dropped by Rs 15 and is being traded at Rs 1, 870 per tola today.
Path to FATF compliance after gray listing
The recent inclusion of Nepal in the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) ‘gray list’ presents both immediate challenges and opportunities for systemic reform for Nepal. The FATF Plenary that concluded in Paris on Friday decided to include Nepal and Laos on the list. This follows the Asia Pacific Group's mutual evaluation report which identified significant deficiencies in Nepal's anti-money laundering framework.
“In Feb 2023, Nepal made a high-level political commitment to work with the FATF and Asia Pacific Group (APG) to strengthen the effectiveness of its anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) regime,” the FATF said. “Since the adoption of its mutual evaluation report in Aug 2023, Nepal has made progress on some of the actions recommended in the report, including streamlining mutual legal assistance (MLA) requests and increasing the capabilities of the Financial Information Unit (FIU).”
The APG’s third mutual evaluation report of 2023 had highlighted various weaknesses in Nepal’s anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing controls. FATF has been evaluating the status of any country in controlling money laundering and terrorism financing based on 11 effectiveness indicators and 40 technical indicators. FATF has concluded that Nepal has not been able to demonstrate full effectiveness in any of the 11 prescribed effectiveness standards. According to APG’s latest report, Nepal has not been able to achieve full or substantial progress in any of these 11 indicators.
The gray-listing could have far-reaching implications for Nepal’s economy. International financial institutions now onwards are likely to implement enhanced due diligence measures for transactions involving Nepali entities. This can affect trade financing and remittance flows which are very crucial components of Nepal’s economy. Likewise, the country might face increased transaction costs and delayed processing times for international transfers. More importantly, this could deter foreign investment at a time when the country is seeking to attract international capital for its development projects. The increased perception of risk could lead to higher borrowing costs and more stringent lending conditions in international markets.
The FATF, however, has provided Nepal with a clear, albeit challenging, pathway to exit the gray list by Jan 2027. The seven-point action plan encompasses comprehensive reforms, from enhancing public awareness about money laundering risks to strengthening technical compliance in preventing terrorism financing, improving risk-based supervision of commercial banks, higher risk cooperatives, casinos, dealers in precious metals and stones and the real estate sector, and demonstrating identification and sanctioning of hundi operators.
Suman Dahal, the director general of the Department of Money Laundering Investigation, says Nepal has already begun addressing these challenges. “Instead of getting entangled in many small financial crimes, we will now focus on major crimes. We will work by setting thresholds for this purpose," he added.
The focus appears to be on three critical areas: improving investigative capacity, increasing prosecutions of financial crimes and enhancing asset seizure mechanisms. One noteworthy intervention is the preparation to implement new technological solutions, including KYC software and integrated data management systems. These technological upgrades, if successfully implemented, could significantly improve Nepal’s ability to monitor and prevent financial crimes.
The success of Nepal’s efforts will largely depend on its ability to translate plans into action. The country’s previous experience with the gray list (2010-2014) should provide valuable lessons for implementing sustainable reforms rather than quick fixes.
The real measure of success will not merely be exiting the grey list but establishing a robust, transparent financial system that can effectively prevent and combat financial crimes. This could position Nepal as a more attractive destination for international investment and trade in the long term.
Nepse surges by 3. 35 points on Monday
The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) gained 3.35 points to close at 2,758.75 points on Monday.
Similarly, the sensitive index surged by 0.60 points to close at 459. 25 points.
A total of 21,110,619-unit shares of 310 companies were traded for Rs 11. 08 billion.
Meanwhile, Guardian Micro Life Insurance Limited (GMLI) was the top gainer today, with its price surging by 10. 00 percent.
Likewise, Wean Nepal Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha Limited (WNLB) was the top loser as its price fell by 10.00 percent.
At the end of the day, total market capitalization stood at Rs 4. 57 trillion.
NICE-2025 Expo kicks off in Pokhara
The tri-nation tourism expo, 'Nepal, India and China Expo (NICE)-2025', has kicked off for the first time in Pokhara from today.
The expo is organized with an objective of bringing in a maximum number of tourists from neighboring countries—India and China.
There is a participation of more than 600 people including 80 buyers, 70 sellers of the tourism sector and 75 international representatives in the three-day event.
Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) Nepal Chapter organized the expo in collaboration with Nepal Tourism Board, Pokhara Tourism Council and other government and private sector partners and stakeholders.
It is believed that the exposition would bring together tourism and hospitality stakeholder organizations from public and private sectors of the three nations onto a single platform to facilitate networking and business opportunities along with deep industry insights and inspirational experiences.
Pokhara is becoming the destination for nature lovers as well as those enjoying adventure sports. According to PATA Nepal, the three-day event is organized under the slogan 'NICE for MICE and More' with the aim of promoting Pokhara as the attractive destination for other events too (meetings, conferences, marriage ceremony, other functions and festivals).
PATA Nepal Chapter Chief Executive Officer, Suresh Singh Budal, shared that the expo has been organized with an objective of promoting Nepal's tourism potential and integrated business opportunity in India and China.
On the second day of the event, tourism experts will exchange knowledge on the issues including 'Visa Destination Insights: Supporting the Tourism Ecosystem to Sustainable Hospitality from Construction to Operation'.
Similarly, different sessions--B2B exhibition, business meeting and network expansion would also be organized on the same day. It is expected that the expo would support tourism and integrated trade promotion.
Mayor of Pokhara Metropolitan City, Dhan Raj Acharya, said gathering of renowned travel agencies of Nepal, China and India, managing the travel of around 200 million tourists for the first time in the context of Pokhara Visit Year 2025, tour operators, tourism experts and international representatives of organizers in Pokhara is an important and historical moment.
He expressed the belief that the international expo would play a significant role in inviting a large number of tourists to Nepal in future, adding this event would further strengthen tourism, business and cultural relations among Nepal, India and China.
Support and participation of all is indispensable to strengthen trade, tourism and partnership, argued Mayor Acharya.
Likewise, Chairperson of Pokhara Tourism Council, Taranath Pahari, shared that the expo would have special importance in tourism promotion of Pokhara which would further highlight the tourism potential of Pokhara.