Corruption remains endemic in Ukraine and a severe impediment to democratic and economic development in the country. Support to anti-corruption efforts in Ukraine is a high political priority for the European Union.

In his opening remarks, His Excellency, Mr Urs Herren, Swiss Confederation Ambassador in Romania, emphasised how important it is to enhance the investigation and asset recovery capacities of Romanian law enforcement and justice authorities, mandated to investigate and prosecute financial crimes and recover stolen assets.

The International Centre for Asset Recovery (ICAR) welcomes the signing earlier this week by Kenya and Switzerland of the Framework for the Return of Assets from Corruption and Crime in Kenya (FRACCK).

The FRACCK sets out good practices in relation to the return of stolen assets, including transparency and accountability, and encourages the use of returned assets to advance sustainable development and benefit the civilian population.

On 26 June 2018, the Basel Institute on Governance and the Office of Integrity and Anti-Corruption of the African Development Bank (AfDB) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) aimed at strengthening collaboration on anti-corruption projects in regional member countries of the African Development Bank Group.

Financial Intelligence Units (FIUs), which represent a country’s official authority for receiving financial information disclosures, are regularly at the forefront of tackling money laundering and terrorist financing. Not surprisingly, they also play a critical role in the asset recovery process. An increasing number of investigations leading to the tracing, identification, seizing/freezing and confiscation of illegal assets are triggered by FIU reports to law enforcement agencies.

The Basel Institute signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate with Colombian authorities to adapt and apply a High Level Reporting Mechanism (HLRM) to prevent corruption and promote fair competition in tenders related to the building of the City of Bogotá’s First Metro Line. The signing ceremony held on 6 August 2018 in Bogotá was one of the final acts by Colombia’s outgoing President Juan Manuel Santos on his last day in office and the day that marked the 280th anniversary of the founding of Bogotá.

Experts from the Basel Institute's International Centre for Asset Recovery (ICAR) conducted a five-day Financial Investigations and Asset Recovery training workshop  in Ukraine from 27 to 31 August 2018.

Financial interviews are a critical component of a financial investigation. Properly conducted, they enable investigators to extract relevant financial information from informants, witnesses or suspects. This provides not only additional leads to further the investigation but also key evidence that could be used in a court of law.

To ensure positive outcomes for financial crimes and asset tracing investigations by law enforcement agencies, it is vital to help investigators gain the necessary interviewing skills.

In October 2018, Mark Pieth and two assistants Stefan Mbiyavanga and Kathrin Betz delivered a workshop on corruption and money laundering to students in Cape Town. The students are enrolled in the University of the Western Cape’s LL.M programme in Transnational Criminal Justice and Crime Prevention. The programme aims at preparing African lawyers and jurists from various countries for leading positions at both the national and international levels.

The results of the seventh annual Basel Anti-Money Laundering Index released today support the growing concern that governments worldwide are still not doing enough to combat money laundering. The Basel AML Index is an independent, research-based ranking that assesses countries' risk exposure to money laundering and terrorist financing.