Financial Crime World

Title: FATF’s Assessment of Russia’s Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing Measures Revealed in New Report

Background

The Financial Action Task Force (FATF), an international organization dedicated to combatting money laundering and terrorist financing, has published a new report evaluating the anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing (AML/CFT) measures of the Russian Federation. The findings of this assessment were adopted during the FATF’s October 2019 Plenary meeting.

About FATF

The FATF is an independent inter-governmental body, established in 1989, tasked with developing policies to protect the global financial system against money laundering, terrorist financing, and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. Their Recommendations are recognized as the global standard for AML/CFT.

Key Findings

  1. Risks and General Situation

    • Russia is a source country for proceeds of crime.
    • Russian Federation has conducted National Risk Assessments (NRAs) for money laundering and terrorist financing.
    • Results of the NRAs align with the assessment team’s findings.

  2. Overall Level of Compliance and Effectiveness

    • Russian authorities have a good understanding of ML/TF risks.
    • National policies address identified risks.
    • Rosfinmonitoring plays a crucial role in the functioning of the AML/CFT regime.

  3. Priority Actions

    • Russia should implement targeted financial sanctions without delay.
    • Requirements should be extended to all natural and legal persons beyond reporting entities.
    • Group-wide information sharing should be improved among financial institutions.

Areas Covered in the Report

The full report covers various aspects of Russia’s AML/CFT regime, including:

  • Legislative frameworks
  • Operational issues
  • Terrorist financing
  • Preventive measures

Access to the Report

It is essential to note that this report is without prejudice to the status of or sovereignty over any territory and does not affect international frontiers and boundaries or the name of any territory, city, or area. Also, no part of this report may be reproduced or translated without prior written permission from the FATF.

You can access the full report on the FATF website: Russian Federation 2019

This report is generated in Markdown format based on the provided text for improved readability and organization.