Sweden’s Anti-Money Laundering Laws Under Scrutiny: Country Makes Progress, but Still Falls Short in Some Areas

A recent report from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has shed light on Sweden’s efforts to combat money laundering and terrorist financing. While the country has made significant strides in implementing anti-money laundering laws, it still faces challenges in several key areas.

Compliance with Anti-Money Laundering Laws

According to the report, Sweden has achieved a high level of compliance in:

• Assessing risk and applying a risk-based approach (R.1)
• National cooperation and coordination efforts (R.2)

However, the country fell short in other areas, including:

• Money laundering offence laws (R.3)
• Confiscation and provisional measures (R.4)

Progress and Challenges

The report also highlighted Sweden’s progress in implementing targeted financial sanctions related to terrorism and terrorist financing (R.6), as well as its regulation and supervision of financial institutions (R.26). Additionally, the country’s powers of supervisors (R.27) and responsibilities of law enforcement and investigative authorities (R.30) have been strengthened.

However, Sweden still faces challenges in:

• Customer due diligence requirements (R.10)
• Record keeping (R.11)
• Financial institution secrecy laws (R.9)

The country also struggled with implementing measures to prevent the use of correspondent banking for money laundering purposes (R.13).

Recommendations for Improvement

To address these challenges, Sweden will need to continue strengthening its anti-money laundering regime and improving cooperation with other countries.

Conclusion

While Sweden’s efforts to combat money laundering and terrorist financing are commendable, there is still much work to be done to bring the country into full compliance with international standards.