Financial Crime World

SLOVENIA FAILS TO FULLY ADDRESS FINANCIAL CRIME DEFICIENCIES, MONEYVAL REPORT SAYS

Moderate Improvements in Combating Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing

A new report by the Council of Europe’s anti-money laundering body MONEYVAL has revealed that Slovenia has made moderate improvements in combating money laundering and terrorist financing. Despite some progress in assessing risks and implementing measures to combat financial crime, significant deficiencies remain.

National Risk Assessment and Action Plan

According to the report, Slovenia’s national risk assessment now covers virtual assets and non-profit organizations, and a new action plan has been adopted to mitigate identified risks. The country has also increased the number of employees at its Office to Fight Money Laundering who can be allocated to high-risk areas.

Limitations in Implementation

However, MONEYVAL notes that these measures have not yet been effectively implemented in practice due to procedural limitations. This means that Slovenia’s efforts to combat financial crime are still hindered by a lack of practical application.

Despite these efforts, Slovenia’s legal framework still contains significant deficiencies when it comes to criminalizing terrorism financing. This failure to address this critical issue has prevented the country from meeting MONEYVAL’s expectations of addressing most technical compliance deficiencies within three years of its mutual evaluation report being adopted.

Compliance Enhancing Procedures (CEPs) and Enhanced Follow-up

As a result, MONEYVAL has decided to apply its Compliance Enhancing Procedures (CEPs) with regard to Slovenia. This will involve inviting the Secretary General of the Council of Europe to send a letter to the country’s authorities requesting corrective measures. Slovenia will also remain in enhanced follow-up and is expected to report back to MONEYVAL on progress in strengthening its implementation of anti-money laundering and combating terrorist financing (AML/CFT) measures within the next year.

Conclusion

The report serves as a reminder that Slovenia still has work to do in order to fully address financial crime deficiencies and bring itself into line with international standards. By taking immediate action to address these shortcomings, Slovenia can ensure that it is better equipped to combat money laundering and terrorist financing in the future.