Slovenia’s Progress in Combating Financial Crime Lags Behind, Says MONEYVAL Report

Slovenia Struggles to Keep Pace with Anti-Money Laundering Standards

Ljubljana - Despite making some progress, Slovenia still has a long way to go in improving its measures to combat money laundering and terrorist financing. A recent report by the Council of Europe’s anti-money laundering body MONEYVAL highlights significant deficiencies in the country’s legislative framework.

Progress Made but Significant Deficiencies Remain

While Slovenia has made efforts to strengthen its anti-money laundering measures, the report identifies several areas where improvement is still needed:

• National Risk Assessment: Slovenia’s National Risk Assessment now covers key sectors such as virtual assets and non-profit organizations.
• Action Plan: A new Action Plan has been adopted to mitigate identified risks.
• Office to Fight Money Laundering: The number of employees allocated to high-risk areas has increased.

However, these efforts have not yet resulted in Slovenia meeting the expectations of MONEYVAL. The country remains “partially compliant” with FATF standards.

MONEYVAL Takes Action

As a result of the report’s findings, MONEYVAL has decided to apply its Compliance Enhancing Procedures (CEPs) to encourage Slovenia to take corrective measures. This will involve:

• Letter from the Secretary General: The Secretary General of the Council of Europe will send a letter to Slovenian authorities requesting necessary actions to be taken.
• Enhanced Follow-Up: Slovenia will remain in enhanced follow-up and is expected to report back to MONEYVAL on progress made within one year.

Slovenia must take swift action to address these deficiencies and ensure that its anti-money laundering measures are up to par with international standards.