Financial Crime World

Bulgaria’s Battle Against Financial Crimes: A Review of Its Measures and Effectiveness

Bulgaria, a European Union member since 2007, has been under the microscope for its efforts to combat money laundering and terrorist financing. In this article, we’ll discuss the recent evaluation report by MONEYVAL, the Council of Europe’s anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing body, which assessed Bulgaria’s level of compliance with the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) 40 Recommendations.

MONEYVAL’s Evaluation of Bulgaria’s AML/CFT System

  1. On-site visit: September 6-17, 2021 The evaluation focused on assessing Bulgaria’s legislative and regulatory framework, the effectiveness of its implementation, and the level of political commitment to combating financial crimes.

  2. Areas of assessment

    • Legal framework for customer due diligence
    • Suspicion transactions reporting
    • Money laundering and terrorist financing risks

  3. Progress and challenges

    • While some progress has been made, concerns remain regarding the effectiveness of the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) in Bulgaria.
    • Recommendations to strengthen Bulgaria’s AML/CFT system include:
      • Enhancing the risk-based approach to AML/CFT
      • Improving the supervision of Designated Non-Financial Businesses and Professions (DNFBPs)
      • Strengthening the FIU’s capabilities

Commitment to Addressing Financial Crimes

  • Despite challenges, Bulgaria remains committed to addressing financial crimes.
  • New legislation on virtual assets and virtual asset service providers is a significant step towards updating its legal framework.
  • The report also acknowledges Bulgaria’s progress in areas such as identifying and freezing suspicious transactions.

A Crucial Time for Bulgaria

  • Given the ongoing challenges related to organized crime and corruption, the report provides valuable insights into areas requiring attention.
  • Bulgaria’s authorities are working to improve their ability to detect and prevent financial crimes, making the report’s recommendations particularly timely.

In Conclusion

The MONEYVAL report offers a thorough assessment of Bulgaria’s measures to combat money laundering and terrorist financing. While progress has been made, there are areas that require improvement, primarily the effectiveness of the FIU and implementing a risk-based approach to AML/CFT. Despite challenges, Bulgaria’s commitment to addressing these issues is evident.

For more insights from the MONEYVAL report, you can check out the full report on their website: Mer-bulgaria-2022.html