Financial Crime World

Albania Boosts Fight Against Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing

Albania has made significant strides in tackling money laundering and terrorist financing, according to a recent report by the Council of Europe’s Committee of Experts on Money Laundering (MONEYVAL). The country has strengthened its measures to comply with international standards, including transparency of legal arrangements and regulation of non-financial institutions.

Key Improvements

  • Transparency of Legal Arrangements: Albania has addressed important shortcomings in its anti-money laundering framework since June 2022. Measures taken by the country include requiring trustees to be subject to anti-money laundering and counter terrorist financing (AML/CFT) requirements and streamlining access to beneficial ownership information for competent authorities.
  • Regulation of Non-Financial Institutions: Albania’s efforts have also focused on regulating and supervising notaries and real estate agents, two professions that are often vulnerable to money laundering activities. The country has empowered its licensing authority for notaries to revoke licenses in cases of AML/CFT legislation infringement and introduced risk-based supervision over real estate agents.

MONEYVAL’s Assessment

MONEYVAL has re-rated Albania’s compliance with Recommendations 25 (transparency and beneficial ownership of legal arrangements) and 28 (regulation and supervision of designated non-financial businesses and professions) from Partially Compliant to Largely Compliant. This change reflects the country’s significant progress in addressing technical shortcomings identified in its 2018 Mutual Evaluation Report.

Progress and Future Plans

  • Implementation of AML/CFT Measures: At present, Albania has made notable strides in implementing AML/CFT measures, with six recommendations rated as fully compliant and 31 as largely compliant out of a total of 40 Recommendations.
  • Reporting Back to MONEYVAL: The country is expected to report back to MONEYVAL on further progress within the next two years.

Conclusion

The Council of Europe’s Committee of Experts on Money Laundering (MONEYVAL) plays a critical role in monitoring compliance with international standards to counter money laundering, terrorist financing, and proliferation financing. Albania’s efforts demonstrate its commitment to strengthening its AML/CFT system and addressing concerns identified by MONEYVAL.