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A Council of Europe report published on Monday and seen by EURACTIV highlights key vulnerabilities in Monaco’s measures against money laundering and the country risks being placed under intense scrutiny by the international Financial Action Task Force (FATF) watchdog.
The report insists Monaco faces significant money laundering risks, mostly due to the “internationally oriented financial activities” that are being offered – and the Principality is a “prime target” for illicit cross-border financial flows.
In most cases, frauds are committed abroad, while the proceeds of the crime are laundered in Monaco, the report noted.
Risk analyses, international cooperation, and the dissuasiveness of sanctions are not completely fit to face fraud and corruption risks, it adds.
Risks associated with terrorism financing, which FATF also regulates at an international level, have been found to be relatively low, though more in-depth analyses are required by Monesgasque authorities.
The country is due to enter a one-year observation phase after the report goes to FATF plenary on 20 February. Should structural reforms not see the light of day in that period, they risk being named and shamed in a public ‘grey list’. Monaco had its name on the grey list until it was removed in 2009.
The report shines a renewed spotlight on Monaco and its financial industry, which has recently been accused of protecting the fortune of Russian oligarchs before aligning with international sanctions against Russia.
The report is the outcome of a several months long evaluation by the Council of Europe’s Committee of Experts on the Evaluation of Anti-Money Laundering Measures and the Financing of Terrorism (MONEYVAL). MONEYVAL assesses Council members’ compliance with international standards and makes policy suggestions based on FATF’s 40 recommendations....
more at EURACTIV