Anti-Money Laundering Efforts in Azerbaijan Need Strengthening, Says Council of Europe Report
The Azerbaijani government has been urged to further enhance its measures to combat money laundering, the financing of terrorism, and the financing of proliferation by the Council of Europe’s anti-money laundering body MONEYVAL.
Overview of Azerbaijan’s Progress
Since 2014, when MONEYVAL last evaluated the country, Azerbaijan has taken several steps to strengthen its legal and institutional framework to tackle money laundering, terrorism financing, and proliferation financing. While noting that Azerbaijan has achieved a substantial level of effectiveness in countering terrorist financing and investigating related offenses, MONEYVAL emphasizes the need for major improvements to pursue investigations and prosecutions effectively.
Key Areas for Improvement
- Domestic Cooperation: Azerbaijan needs to improve domestic cooperation at an operational level to ensure effective investigation and prosecution.
- Consistency in Investigations and Prosecutions: There should be increased consistency in investigations and prosecutions to prevent loopholes in the system.
- Supervision of Financial Institutions: Azerbaijan’s authorities need to strengthen supervision of financial institutions and designated non-financial businesses and professions.
- Enforcement and Sanctioning Powers: Fundamental improvements are required, including strengthening enforcement and sanctioning powers for breaches of professional AML/CFT obligations.
Progress and Future Plans
Azerbaijan has taken important steps to prevent the misuse of legal persons. However, more proactive measures are required to ensure transparency. Reporting entities should apply necessary identification and verification measures in case of politically exposed persons and beneficial owners.
The country will report back to MONEYVAL on progress achieved in improving its AML/CFT measures by December 2025. Azerbaijan has made significant progress since the last evaluation, but there is still much work to be done to strengthen its anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing systems.
Statement from MONEYVAL Chairman
MONEYVAL Chairman, Thomas Karp, stated that “Azerbaijan’s authorities have shown a commitment to improving their AML/CFT systems, but more needs to be done to ensure effective implementation. We will continue to work closely with the Azerbaijani government to strengthen its efforts and achieve full compliance with international standards.”
About MONEYVAL
The Committee of Experts on the Evaluation of Anti-Money Laundering Measures and the Financing of Terrorism (MONEYVAL) is a monitoring body of the Council of Europe that evaluates 33 States and territories, making recommendations to national authorities for necessary improvements to their anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing systems.