Financial Crime World

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Moldova, Republic of: Compliance Risks in Finance

Progress and Shortcomings

The Republic of Moldova has made significant strides in improving its compliance with global anti-money laundering (AML) and terrorism financing standards. However, despite this progress, the country still requires further improvement to address lingering shortcomings.

Technical Compliance Deficiencies Persist

According to a follow-up report released by MONEYVAL, the country’s legal and institutional framework for combating money laundering and financing of terrorism has strengthened. However, several technical compliance deficiencies persist, particularly in relation to virtual assets and virtual asset service providers.

MONEYVAL Report Highlights

The report highlights that while Moldova has made progress in addressing most of the technical compliance deficiencies impacting targeted financial sanctions related to terrorism, it has only limited success in remedying shortcomings affecting the application of FATF standards on virtual assets. As a result, MONEYVAL re-rated Moldova’s compliance with these recommendations as Largely Compliant and Partially Compliant.

Recommendations for Improvement

MONEYVAL notes that despite progress made since the adoption of the mutual evaluation report in July 2019 and the first follow-up in May 2022, the country has not achieved expected goals within the three-year timeframe. The organization urges Moldovan authorities to address these shortcomings by June 2025.

Current Compliance Status

Currently, Moldova is rated as Compliant with nine FATF recommendations, Largely Compliant with 25, and Partially Compliant with six out of a total of 40 recommendations. None of the recommendations are assessed as non-compliant.

MONEYVAL Recommendations for Improvement

Here are some key recommendations from MONEYVAL to improve Moldova’s compliance:

  • Strengthen laws and regulations related to virtual assets and service providers
  • Enhance customer due diligence and risk assessment procedures
  • Improve the effectiveness of the country’s anti-money laundering body
  • Increase transparency in financial transactions

Enhanced Follow-up and Progress Updates

The report emphasizes that Moldova remains in enhanced follow-up and will be expected to provide updates on its progress within one year.