Emirates Gold DMCC has clarified that the suspension of its UAE Good Delivery accreditation is a temporary one and its management is working with the Emirates Bullion Committee to resolve their concerns and have the accreditation reinstated.

 

Emirates Gold DMCC has not lost its trading licence as incorrectly reported in certain articles, it said, adding that it has not been party to any money laundering activity as "incorrectly reported on certain websites".

 

The statement follows the supension of Emirates Gold DMCC, one of UAE's biggest gold refineries which has manufactured gold for more than three decades, from the UAE Good Delivery list of approved refineries.  On Friday, the London Bullion Market Association (LBMA), which regulates the world’s largest gold trading hub, also suspended Emirates Gold's affiliate membership, citing a recent “due diligence review”.

 

The UAE unveiled the Good Delivery Standard for gold in November 2021, a voluntary national standard. Refiners must meet certain conditions including anti-money laundering and responsible sourcing standards to be included on the list.

 

The Emirates Gold statement said it has passed all recent compliance audits relating to the Emirates Bullion Committee Compliance requirements for UAE Good Delivery Accreditation, the LBMA Responsible Gold Guidance audit and the Anti Money Laundering audit. Emirates Gold has received highly positive feedback from its compliance auditors on the strength of its compliance processes, it claimed.

 

"The suspension by the Emirates Bullion Committee has nothing whatsoever to do with Emirates Gold’s compliance processes, activities or quality control practices and to the best of our knowledge the suspension has come about because of the Emirates Bullion Committee’s perceived risk to its reputation of our shareholding structure. There have been no concerns raised about Emirates Gold’s responsible sourcing and anti-money laundering practices," it said.

 

Emirates Gold has at all times strictly followed the rules and processes of the UAE Good Delivery requirements, the LBMA responsible sourcing requirements and the UAE Ministry of Economy Anti-Money Laundering rules, the statement said.

 

"Emirates Gold is run by a professional management team who maintain the strictest Anti Money Laundering practices who, to the best of its knowledge, and with the assurance of its strong compliance policies, procedures and implementation, have not been party to any money laundering activity as incorrectly reported on certain websites," it added.

 

"The LBMA suspension has been purely a reaction to the UAE Good Delivery Accreditation suspension.

To the best of our knowledge the LBMA has not established any breach of its rules by Emirates Gold as incorrectly implied in certain media reports," it said.

 

"Stakeholders can refer to our website at https://www.emiratesgold.ae/reports/  for copies of our recent compliance audit reports for both the UAE Good Delivery compliance audit and the LBMA compliance audit.

 

"The ultimate beneficial owners of Emirates Gold have nothing to do with any allegations made by Al Jazeera in their 'Gold Mafia Documentary' and are independent and separate from any persons mentioned in this so-called documentary," the statement said.

 

"We would like to assure our stakeholders that Emirates Gold will continue in business during this time of suspension of our UAE Good Delivery Accreditation and our LBMA affiliate membership whilst it works with the relevant entities to reinstate such accreditation and membership," the statement added. -TradeArabia News Service