Title: Armenian Law Enforcement Agents Receive Training on Investigating Cryptocurrency-Related Financial Crimes
Background
From April 24 to 26, in Yerevan, Armenia, the Office of the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities (OCEEA) and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) organized a three-day training session for 27 representatives from various law enforcement agencies on crypto-asset investigations.
The Comprehensive Training Program
The training took place at the OSCE office in Armenia. Its primary goal was to equip participants with necessary skills and tools for effective investigations into crypto-crimes:
- Sessions on foundational methods for tracking criminal transactions on various blockchain networks, derived from real-world cases.
- A platform for exchanging best practices.
- Insights into specialized analytics software and open-source tools tailored to the field.
Innovative Resources
The following capabilities are some of the innovative resources the participants gained access to:
- Tracing transactions on different blockchains
- Evaluating risks associated with particular addresses and potential exposure to criminal funds
- Uncovering clusters of interconnected transactions
Strengthening Domestic Law Enforcement Capabilities
Kurban Babayev, Economic Adviser at OCEEA, emphasized the importance of fortifying Armenia’s domestic law enforcement capabilities in the ever-evolving financial technology landscape:
“It’s vital for Armenia to strengthen its domestic law enforcement capabilities, specifically in the realm of investigating and tracing virtual assets,” Babayev stated. “The OSCE remains firmly committed to supporting Armenia in its mission to address money laundering, with a particular focus on virtual assets and cryptocurrencies.”
OSCE-led Extra-budgetary Project
The training is a key part of the OSCE-led extra-budgetary project, titled “Innovative policy solutions to mitigate money-laundering risks of virtual assets.” This project empowers OSCE participating States to establish national capacities in tackling criminal risks related to virtual assets and cryptocurrencies.
The project is funded by Germany, Italy, Poland, Romania, the United Kingdom, and the United States.