Financial Crime World

Algeria Falls Short on Financial Crime Reporting Requirements

A recent assessment by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has revealed that Algeria has failed to meet several financial crime reporting requirements, despite being partially or largely compliant in most areas.

Key Findings

According to the Benin Follow-Up Report 2023, Algeria received a rating of “partially compliant” or “largely compliant” in many areas, but fell short in several key aspects. The country was found to be:

  • Non-compliant with transparency and beneficial ownership of legal persons (R.24) and transparency and beneficial ownership of legal arrangements (R.25)
  • Partially compliant with assessing risk and applying a risk-based approach (R.1), national cooperation and coordination (R.2), and confiscation and provisional measures (R.4)
  • Partially compliant with money laundering offence (R.3) and terrorist financing offence (R.5)

On the other hand, Algeria received a rating of “compliant” for:

  • Financial institution secrecy laws (R.9)
  • Customer due diligence (R.10)
  • Reporting of suspicious transactions (R.20)

The country was also found to be largely compliant in areas such as:

  • Internal controls and foreign branches and subsidiaries (R.18)
  • Reliance on third parties (R.17)

Urgent Reforms Needed

The FATF has called on Algeria to address these shortcomings and implement the necessary reforms to improve its financial crime reporting requirements. Failure to do so could result in further scrutiny and potential sanctions from the international community.

In response, the Algerian government has vowed to work towards improving its financial crime reporting requirements and meeting the FATF’s recommendations. A government spokesperson stated:

“We are committed to combating financial crime and money laundering, and we will take all necessary steps to ensure that our country is fully compliant with international standards.”

Next Steps

It remains to be seen how Algeria will address these shortcomings and implement the necessary reforms. The FATF will continue to monitor the country’s progress and provide guidance on how to improve its financial crime reporting requirements.