Financial Crime World

Andorra Cracks Down on Money Laundering with Stringent Regulations

Andorra has taken significant steps to curb money laundering and terrorist financing by implementing stringent regulations in line with the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Recommendations.

Progress Made

According to the latest follow-up report, Andorra has made substantial progress in addressing the technical requirements of the FATF Recommendations. The report highlights that Andorra is largely compliant with recommendations R.1-R.3, R.5-R.6, and R.10-R.20, indicating a robust risk assessment framework, effective national cooperation and coordination, and strong measures against money laundering and terrorist financing.

Areas of Improvement

However, there are several areas where Andorra requires improvement:

  • Correspondent banking (R.13)
  • Money or value transfer services (R.14)
  • New technologies (R.15)
  • Reporting of suspicious transactions (R.20)

Progress in Preventing Terrorist Financing

Andorra has also made significant progress in implementing measures to prevent the misuse of financial institutions for terrorist financing, including:

  • Targeted financial sanctions related to terrorism and terrorist financing (R.6)
  • International cooperation (R.36-R.40)

Regulatory Improvement

In addition, Andorra has demonstrated a commitment to improving its regulation and supervision of financial institutions (R.26), DNFBPs (R.28), and transparency and beneficial ownership of legal persons and arrangements (R.24-R.25).

Conclusion

While there are still areas for improvement, the report acknowledges Andorra’s efforts in addressing the technical requirements of the FATF Recommendations and its commitment to combating money laundering and terrorist financing.

The follow-up report provides a comprehensive assessment of Andorra’s implementation of the FATF Recommendations, highlighting both strengths and weaknesses. The report is expected to inform international efforts to combat money laundering and terrorist financing, and will be reviewed by the FATF in the coming months.