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Council of May 20, 2015: Prevention of Financial System Abuse for Money Laundering and Terrorism Funding

The Council of May 20, 2015, has emphasized the importance of preventing financial system abuse for money laundering and terrorism funding. The council has highlighted the need for stricter regulations and increased cooperation between governments to combat these serious crimes.

Combating Financial Crimes

Money laundering and terrorism funding are significant threats to global economic stability and national security. These illegal activities involve the concealment of illegally obtained funds through complex financial transactions, allowing criminals to hide their illicit proceeds.

FIU Role in Combating Financial Crimes

Financial Intelligence Units (FIUs) play a crucial role in preventing anti-money laundering and anti-terrorist financing (AML/CFT) activities. They are responsible for receiving, processing, and analyzing reports made by financial institutions or other entities in accordance with local AML/CFT laws and regulations.

Analysis and Monitoring

The Financial Intelligence Unit of Kosovo acts as the competent authority, responsible for requesting, receiving, analyzing, and disseminating information related to potential money laundering and terrorist financing. FIU remains committed to contributing to local issues and global anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing programs by developing policies and strengthening information-sharing networks.

Tasks and Powers of FIU-K

FIU’s tasks and powers include:

Receiving and analyzing reports and information collected from a wide range of regulated entities
Processing and analyzing information in conjunction with various other information sources to produce financial intelligence aligned with key risks and threats identified in the national risk assessment and against the country’s national security

FIU-K receives and analyzes information provided by:

FIUs of foreign countries
Courts, law enforcement bodies, intergovernmental organizations, public or governmental bodies
Voluntarily provided information in connection with suspicions of money laundering, related criminal offenses, and/or terrorist financing

The growth of money laundering and terrorism funding activities globally requires the collection of more detailed information, searching for new data sources, and developing advanced tools to quickly analyze and correlate high-volume and diverse information.

Conclusion

The Council of May 20, 2015, has emphasized the importance of preventing financial system abuse for money laundering and terrorism funding. FIU-K plays a crucial role in combating these crimes by analyzing and monitoring reports and information, strengthening information-sharing networks, and developing policies to prevent anti-money laundering and anti-terrorist financing activities.

Upcoming Activities

FIU-K is expected to approve the following by-laws during 2022:

Administrative Instruction for Reporting Entities for SAR Reporting
Guidelines on risk-based supervision
Administrative Instruction for the prevention and detection of terrorist financing
Administrative Instruction for the prevention and detection of money laundering
Guidance on risk factors
Guidance on Strategic Analysis
Standard Operating Procedure for the dissemination and exchange of information between FIU-K and competent authorities
Standard Operating Procedure for Transaction Freezing

The Financial Intelligence Unit of Kosovo remains committed to contributing to local issues and global anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing programs, developing policies, strengthening information-sharing networks, and combating financial crimes.