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FATF Report: Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing Measures in Finland
The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has released a report assessing Finland’s compliance with international standards for anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-terrorist financing (CTF). The report provides an overview of Finland’s current measures and highlights areas where improvements are needed.
International Cooperation
Finland cooperates effectively with its foreign counterparts, particularly neighboring countries. Law enforcement agencies (LEAs) seek international cooperation to build their cases and share timely and accurate information. The main financial supervisor, FIN-FSA, actively engages with its counterparts in EU and Nordic countries.
Key Points
- Finland has a strong track record of international cooperation
- LEAs engage regularly with foreign counterparts to share information and build cases
- FIN-FSA collaborates closely with EU and Nordic countries on AML/CFT matters
Recommendations for Improvement
The report identifies several areas where Finland needs to improve its AML/CFT measures:
Recommendations
- AML/CFT Supervision: Ensure that supervisors accelerate and finalize their methodology for risk-sensitive supervision and implement it promptly.
- Resource Allocation: Allocate adequate resources, including human resources, to AML/CFT supervisors (FIN-FSA and RSAA) to enable them to conduct their responsibilities effectively.
- Beneficial Ownership Registry: Ensure that the framework for setting up the beneficial ownership registry requires relevant verification of collected information and implement it urgently.
- Common Understanding of ML/TF Risks: Fill existing gaps in understanding ML/TF risks and establish mechanisms to provide all relevant authorities with an updated view of these risks.
- Operational Cooperation: Set up platforms or channels to support operational cooperation between relevant authorities, including the FIU and LEAs.
Effectiveness and Technical Compliance Ratings
The report provides effectiveness ratings for each area:
- IO.1 - Risk, policy, and coordination: Substantial
- IO.2 - International cooperation: High
- IO.3 - Supervision: Moderate
- IO.4 - Preventive measures: Moderate
- … (and so on)
Similarly, technical compliance ratings are provided for each of the 18 Recommendations (R.1 to R.18).