Every country’s financial intelligence unit (FID) is an important part of the system for prevention of laundering of proceeds derived from criminal activity. By providing information and intelligence data to law enforcement and other institutions, as well as foreign partners, FID plays an important role in efforts to battle crimes that put at risk state security, FID notes.
The lack of autonomy or functional independence can put at risk not only the efficiency of FID activities but also negatively affect the quality of money laundering and terrorism financing investigations. FID receives and analyses information that often touches on sensitive topics, such as information regarding corruption, organised crime and grey economy.
This is why it is highly important for FID to function in an environment that promotes functional independence and autonomy on a financial and operational level.
Independence and autonomy of FID operations in international context
International standards for prevention of money laundering and terrorism financing also stress the importance of independence for FID operations so that the institution is able to fulfil its duties effectively. This topic has been on the table of FID Egmont Group for several years. Independence and autonomy of FID also plays a decisive role for international cooperation. It is important for foreign partners to have sufficient confidence that FID, with which they have to cooperate actively, have sufficient functional independence and autonomy in order to perform their tasks effectively and provide information confidentiality. Information exchange in an international context is largely based on mutual trust between FID of different countries. If there is no mutual trust, FID are left unable to benefit from international information exchange and cooperation with partners in other countries, which also risks undermining the country’s reputation.
On Monday, 7 February, the forum titled Autonomy of Financial Intelligence Units: Creation of an effective money laundering the terrorism financing prevention system will be held online. During this event, high profile experts will discuss the role of financial intelligence units in efforts to prevent legalisation of illegally acquired finances, conditions for the creation of an independent unit, problematic topics, the importance of innovations in financial intelligence and other important topics. A special discussion is planned for the experience in Baltic States.
The objective of the forum is initiating discussions and promote understanding of the importance of autonomy for FID in prevention of money laundering and terrorism financing. Participants of the discussion will discuss different approaches and pre-conditions for the creation of effective units, identify the signs that ensure FID remain functionally independent and autonomous, share examples and analyse the situation in Baltic States in more detail.
The event will be opened by Saeima’s National Security Committee’s chairman Māris Kučinskis and chief of Latvia’s Financial Intelligence Unit Ilze Znotiņa.
The discussion will be attended by:
David Lewis, former FATF executive secretary;
Daniel Thelesklaf, former Moneyval chairman and former chief of Switzerland’s and Lichtenstein’s Financial Intelligence Unit;
Yehuda Shaffer, FATF expert, former head of the Israeli Financial Intelligence Unit,
Matis Mäeker, Chief of Estonia’s Financial Intelligence Unit,
Edmundas Jankunas, Chief of Lithuania’s Financial Intelligence Unit.
International forum to discuss independence and autonomy of financial intelligence units
