Members of an intergovernmental organization of financial intelligence units are considering plans to streamline the exchange of data on potential financial crimes across national borders, an official with the group said Monday.
Financial intelligence units sometimes fail to set out concrete goals and metrics to measure performance, including tracking the number of money launderers convicted, terrorist attacks thwarted and amount of assets seized, according to author Jayesh D'Souza.
The Egmont Group, a Toronto-based association of financial intelligence units, suspended El Salvador from membership on June 5 on the grounds that its terrorist financing controls are inadequate.
Nine jurisdictions, including Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka and Macau, have joined the Toronto-based international consortium of financial intelligence units known as the Egmont Group. Several of the new members have been the object of critical Financial Action Task Force evaluations in recent years.
Banks are revamping their financial intelligence units to tackle not only money laundering but other crimes, including fraud, as part of an effort to rein in expenses, say compliance professionals.
The Egmont Group, during an April 2006 meeting, gave Bolivia one year to adopt laws or regulations identifying terrorist financing as a crime.
Egmont also admitted India, Armenia, Belarus and Niue during its annual plenary meeting, a spokesperson for the U.S. Financial Crimes Enforcement Network confirmed.
Although financial intelligence units (FIUs) have become all the rage, James Richards has long advocated their use by banks in anti-money laundering programs. Richards spoke recently about FIUs and how they are changing the way banks approach AML compliance.
The Egmont Group, which is turning 10 this year, will meet to discuss the role of financial intelligence units in money laundering and terrorist prevention at its upcoming plenary in Washington, D.C.