Georgia Urged to Strengthen Fight Against Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing
A recent report by the Council of Europe’s anti-money laundering body, MONEYVAL, has called on Georgia to improve its efforts to combat money laundering and terrorism financing. The report assesses the country’s effectiveness in implementing Financial Action Task Force (FATF) recommendations and identifies several areas that require attention.
Key Findings
The report highlights several key findings, including:
- Integrity Analysis Needed: A further analysis of integrity in public and private sectors is necessary.
- Informal Economy Concerns: Insufficient attention has been given to the informal economy and large cash flows.
- Trade-Based Terrorism Financing Risks: Insufficient assessment of trade-based terrorism financing risks.
- Real Estate Sector Vulnerability: No effective gatekeeper in the real estate sector to prevent money laundering and terrorism financing.
- FIU Under-Resourcing: The financial intelligence unit (FIU) is under-resourced.
- Limited Information Sharing: Limited exchange of information and intelligence between authorities.
Recommendations
The report concludes that Georgia needs to:
- Conduct a further analysis of integrity in public and private sectors
- Develop integrity strategies
- Improve its ability to detect and prosecute money laundering and terrorism financing cases
- Increase transparency regarding beneficial ownership
- Implement more effective supervision of casinos and real estate transactions
International Support
The International Development Finance Institution (IDFI) has welcomed the report’s findings and called for greater attention to be paid to corruption and transparency in Georgia. IDFI has been working to promote integrity strategies and combat corruption in the country.
Access the Full Report
The full report is available on the MONEYVAL website.
Conclusion
Georgia’s authorities have been urged to spare no effort in implementing the recommendations of MONEYVAL and FATF. The country has a long history of discussing money laundering risks, with international organisations and strategic partners highlighting concerns over bank fraud, cybercrime, and social engineering schemes.