Financial Crime World

Ecuador’s Financial Crime Observatory Unveils Groundbreaking Data Analysis Platform

A revolutionary new platform has been launched to combat financial crime in Ecuador, promising to change the way experts and citizens tackle money laundering, tax evasion, and credit fraud. The Observatory of Financial Crime (OFC) is an interactive digital platform designed for data sharing and collaborative analysis.

A Democratized Approach to Applied Policy Research

The OFC combines cutting-edge practices in data ethnography and analysis to enable users to build visual narratives around pressing financial issues. This fosters a democratized approach to applied policy research, providing open access to a wealth of data on:

  • Money laundering lawsuits
  • Offshore tax crimes
  • Fiscal avoidance
  • Illegal credit transactions at various scales

Ethnographic Case Studies and Data Sharing

In addition to providing datasets, the OFC publishes ethnographic case studies of financial pyramids in Ecuador, with a particular focus on recent uses of electronic money. This information is generated by a diverse range of institutions participating in the OFC, including:

  • Ecuadorian National Police
  • Judiciary Council
  • Financial regulators and experts
  • Bank customer associations
  • NGOs
  • Universities

Interinstitutional Council and Validation Process

The OFC’s Interinstitutional Council, comprising representatives from these organizations, meets regularly to validate and analyze the data. The platform’s ultimate goal is to make financial crime databases operational for:

  • Computational prediction
  • Visualization
  • Interaction with other datasets

Real Estate Price Mapping Initiative

One notable initiative undertaken by the OFC team is currently mapping real estate prices and money laundering in Manta, a city plagued by lack of transparency in banking management. This project aims to strengthen data quality and interoperability, issues that are particularly pressing in Ecuador due to widespread accountability and transparency failures in banking practices.

A New Era in Transparency and Citizen Oversight

The launch of the OFC marks an important milestone in Ecuador’s fight against financial crime, offering a new level of transparency and citizen oversight to counterbalance the country’s banking management woes. This groundbreaking platform is poised to revolutionize the way experts and citizens tackle financial crime, ultimately contributing to a more transparent and accountable financial system in Ecuador.