Financial Crime World

Albania Urged to Boost Financial Crime Risk Assessment Tools

The Council of Europe’s anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-terrorism financing (CFT) body, MONEYVAL, has published its fifth evaluation report on Albania, urging the country to enhance its efforts in preventing and combating financial crimes.

Major Money Laundering Risks in Albania

The report highlights corruption as a major money laundering risk in Albania, with substantial amounts of criminal proceeds generated from organized crime activities. Despite being aware of these risks, Albanian law enforcement agencies have paid limited attention to targeting corruption-related money laundering cases.

Recommendations for Improving AML/CFT Risk Assessment

MONEYVAL recommends the following measures to improve the analysis of AML/CFT risks:

  • Conducting a more in-depth terrorist financing risk assessment
  • Understanding the impact of the informal economy and corruption on AML/CFT risks
  • Assessing the risk posed by legal persons

Issues with Prosecution System and Asset Confiscation

The report also criticizes Albania’s prosecution system for its low performance in money laundering investigations, recommending better use of circumstantial evidence concerning predicate crimes committed abroad. Additionally, MONEYVAL notes that Albania has a robust legal framework for confiscating criminal proceeds but has not been effective in seizing and confiscating assets.

Recommendations for Improving Prosecution System and Asset Confiscation

MONEYVAL recommends:

  • Identifying criminal proceeds located abroad and taking appropriate actions to confiscate them
  • Simplifying the legal framework for executing foreign mutual legal assistance requests
  • Introducing a case management system to prioritize MLA cases

Concerns about Terrorist Financing

The report expresses concerns about Albania’s lack of systematic approach towards identifying and investigating financing aspects of terrorism-related offenses.

Recommendations for Improving Terrorist Financing Risk Assessment

MONEYVAL recommends:

  • Conducting regular risk assessments to identify vulnerabilities in the financial sector
  • Enhancing international cooperation to track and freeze terrorist financing assets
  • Implementing robust customer due diligence measures to prevent terrorist financing

Issues with Financial Supervisory Authority (FSA) and Bank of Albania

The report highlights issues with the Bank of Albania and FSA, recommending that they:

  • Implement high standards for reviewing applications by financial institutions
  • Assess criminal records more comprehensively
  • Obtain international cooperation whenever appropriate

Enhanced Follow-Up Procedure

In light of these findings, MONEYVAL has decided to apply its enhanced follow-up procedure to Albania. This will ensure that the country implements the recommended measures and makes progress in preventing and combating financial crimes.

Overall, MONEYVAL’s evaluation report highlights several areas where Albania needs to improve its AML/CFT framework to prevent and combat financial crimes effectively. By implementing these recommendations, Albania can strengthen its efforts against money laundering, terrorist financing, and other financial crimes.