Financial Crime World

Malta’s Financial Crime Trends Under Scrutiny: National Risk Assessment 2023 Reveals Key Findings

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The National Coordinating Committee has released an updated edition of the National Risk Assessment (NRA) 2023, providing insights into the latest trends and patterns in financial crime. This report is a collaborative effort between government authorities, law enforcement agencies, and private sector bodies to identify vulnerabilities and threats related to money laundering, terrorist financing, proliferation financing, and targeted financial sanctions.

Key Findings

The assessment reveals that:

  • While there has been a decline in money laundering residual risk across most sectors, certain industries continue to pose the highest medium-high residual risk, including:
    • Financial institutions
    • Company service providers
    • Tax advisors
    • Dealers in immovable property and high-value goods
    • Legal persons
  • Terrorist financing poses a medium-level risk for Malta, driven by various threats and vulnerabilities, including:
    • Movement of funds through financial institutions
    • Involvement of Maltese entities with beneficial owners linked to high-risk jurisdictions
    • Cash cross-border movements
    • Disbursements from voluntary organizations
  • Proliferation financing and targeted financial sanctions also pose a medium-level risk, primarily due to:
    • Use of money transfer services for cash transfers related to procurement of goods
    • Cross-border smuggling of cash to support proliferation activities
    • Trade finance products in the procurement of proliferation-sensitive goods

Recommendations and Next Steps

The report serves as a crucial tool for stakeholders to enhance their risk-based approach and identify areas requiring enhanced mitigation measures. Subject persons are advised to consider the findings and recommendations outlined in the NRA 2023 as part of their annual business risk assessment.

Those seeking assistance with revising their Business Risk Assessment can contact Diane Bugeja and/or Peter Mizzi for guidance.