It looks as if the nation with the world’s second fastest-growing economy is considering the first serious expansion of its AML laws. Lawmakers in India are currently reviewing a wide-ranging measure that would require businesses including money changers, money transfer service providers and even casinos to adhere to stricter anti-money laundering reporting regulations.

For years, India’s leaders were happy with what they had on the books and didn’t change the AML laws as the European Union and United States did in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks. However, now that India is a world-leading economic center whose banks are integrating with others in the international financial community, expansion to its AML laws is under consideration.

Such an expansion of its AML laws demonstrates to the rest of the world that India protects its financial institutions just as carefully as other nations do and, therefore, is a good business partner. The proposed legislation has been recently tabled for amendment so that when it is reintroduced it will be “Financial Action Task Force (FATF) compliant.”

Other parallel reform-minded legislation being considered by Indian legislators would require more transparency in the identification of the private parties bidding on large supplies of the nation’s coal from its nationalized mines. India is one of the world’s leading producers of coal.

Apparently, India’s leaders are using the reformist measures to position the nation as a serious player in the economic superpower race which will drive the engine of its economy with money from pure sources instead of tapping funds tainted by obscurity.