EU executive plans to step up game against money laundering

Date:

Share post:

The European Commission on Tuesday presented plans to set up a new agency to fight money laundering, attempting to combat a crime that costs the bloc billions of euros each year.

The agency would oversee financial institutions that are deemed as “high-risk” in the 27 member states – those that operate in multiple countries in complex cross-border operations, for example – and coordinate anti-money-laundering efforts with national agencies.

“Money-laundering scandals stain Europe’s reputation, … eroding [trust] in banks and financial institutions, and also authorities,” the commission’s executive vice president, Valdis

Dombrovskis, said in an interview with dpa and other international outlets.

The agency would employ about 250 people, Dombrovskis said.

According to law-enforcement agency Europol, 10 financial intelligence units in the EU signaled suspicious transactions totaling around 178.8 billion euros (213.2 billion dollars) in 2014 – up from 99.4 billion euros in 2013.

This constitutes, Europol estimates, between 0.7 and 1.28 per cent of the EU’s annual gross domestic product (GDP).

The commission estimates money laundering to cost around 1 per cent of GDP annually.

But instead of a unified and effective response to money laundering, efforts to combat the crime remained fragmented, the European Court of Auditors found last month.

To harmonize the rules, the commission also suggests amending EU rules to make them directly applicable across the bloc, instead of leaving it up to member states to write them into their own laws.

While the EU had introduced anti-money-laundering legislation decades ago, “also criminals are becoming more imaginative, so our laws need to keep up with the developments,” Dombrovskis said.

The agency could impose sanctions in case of misconduct. The proposal still needs to be green-lighted by the EU countries and European Parliament. The commission also intends to set a maximum of 10,000 euros for cash transactions.

Countries that have stricter limits, such as Spain and the Netherlands, can keep them.
Another major part of the commission’s anti-money-laundering package is to include cryptocurrency in its existing legal framework to close existing loopholes.

“Cryptoassets are increasingly used for money laundering and other criminal purposes,” Dombrovskis said.

However, this only applies to transactions within, to, or from the EU.

Related articles

President Mahama approves Earmarked Funds Capping and Realignment (Amendment) Bill, 2025

President John Dramani Mahama on Wednesday, signed into law the Earmarked Funds Capping and Realignment (Amendment) Bill, 2025.The...

President Mahama assents to Ghana Gold Board Bill, 2025

President John Dramani Mahama has assented to the Ghana Gold Board Bill, 2025, establishing the Goldboard to oversee,...

Agortime-Ziope DCE secures 100 per cent endorsement, pledges to embrace challenges and drive development

The newly appointed District Chief Executive (DCE) for Agortime-Ziope, Mr Alfred Klu Odikro, has received a 100 per...

Airlines have alerted Heathrow about the power supply days before it shuts down.

Heathrow Airport was warned about the "resilience" of its power supply in the days before a fire which...