Technical assistance
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Moldova gains five certified trainers in financial investigations and asset recovery
Congratulations to the five Moldovan practitioners who are now certified to conduct training in financial investigations and asset recovery using the case-based training methodology of the Basel Institute's International Centre for Asset Recovery ICAR . They received their trainer certificates at the end of a 10-month Train-the-Trainer programme run by ICAR with Moldova's National Institute of Justice NIJ . The final workshop took place in Chisinau on 14–18 September 2026. Over five workshops since December 2025, the programme also trained 106 judges, prosecutors, investigators and other practitioners. The programme responded to a request from Moldova's President, Maia Sandu, for support in building skills across the country's asset recovery chain, from financial investigation to international cooperation and confiscation. It forms part of the CRESTA asset recovery assistance project, which ICAR implements with financial support from the Swiss Cooperation Office in Moldova. In addition to training, this includes hands-on support with live cases and legislative reform. We congratulate the new trainers and all participants, and thank the NIJ and other government partners for the fruitful collaboration. The new trainers The five certified trainers work at the heart of Moldova's efforts to recover criminal assets. One is a Deputy Chief Prosecutor at the Anti-Corruption Prosecution Office. Two lead or work in criminal investigation teams at the State Fiscal Service's anti-fraud directorate. The other two are at the Criminal Assets Recovery Agency. One of them, Pavel Calpajiu, heads the Criminal Assets Recovery Agency's department for valuing and managing seized assets. During the programme he gave a session on parallel financial investigations, which means following the money from the very start of a case. This approach was emphasised throughout the whole training. The five – three women, two men – are now ready to train their colleagues on their own. Why train trainers? Training local trainers means the skills remain in Moldova long after the programme ends. With the NIJ's support, the new trainers can keep transferring what they have learned to new groups of practitioners. People also learn better from their peers. The new trainers know Moldova's laws and institutions, and they work on the same kinds of cases as the people they teach. Their examples come from real experience. Teaching benefits the trainers too. Practitioners who train others often try out new approaches in their own cases and bring those lessons back into the classroom. Over time, this helps investigators and prosecutors across the country find more effective ways to trace and recover criminal assets. Learning by doing ICAR's methodology is built around a realistic case that participants investigate in small groups, from the first suspicion to the recovery of assets. One participant said: The investigation we conducted was extremely interesting and instructive, providing me with a clear understanding of how a real process unfolds. Another remarked: I gained new knowledge and skills that I will apply in my prosecution and judicial trainer daily work and future practice. Another participant found that the group work was central to the course, as it: enhances teamwork and the exchange of experiences among group members from different fields, which ultimately facilitates \ learning\ . Participants came from more than 10 institutions, including the courts, prosecution offices, the Criminal Assets Recovery Agency, the National Anti-Corruption Centre, the National Integrity Authority, the State Fiscal Service, the Customs Service, the police and the Office for the Prevention and Control of Money Laundering. ICAR-led learning Our ICAR training team has expanded its training offer to meet the varied needs of practitioners everywhere. If you’re not a government agency, check out the free eLearning courses on Basel LEARN, or secure your spot on ICAR’s four-day online course on asset recovery that is open to individuals including journalists and civil society. For a deeper dive into the theory and practice of investigations and asset recovery, there’s still time to enrol on our academic programme with the University of Basel, Combating financial crime through asset recovery.
Diagnosing priorities for stronger asset recovery in Romania
A new diagnostic by the Basel Institute on Governance’s International Centre for Asset Recovery ICAR will help Romania target reforms and technical assistance to strengthen its ability to recover illicit assets. The report, Enhancing and Modernising the Romanian Asset Recovery System, was presented at an event hosted by Romania’s National Agency for the Management of Seized Assets ANABI in Bucharest in September 2026. It provides an independent assessment of the system and recommendations to improve its effectiveness. The event brought together senior Romanian officials and Swiss partners, reflecting high-level support for strengthening the asset recovery system. Participants included Switzerland’s Ambassador to Romania, Massimo Baggi, State Secretary at the Ministry of Justice Ioan Turc and ANABI Director General Elena Grăniceru, alongside representatives of national authorities, European and international partner institutions and civil society. Understanding the barriers to asset recovery To target support where it is most needed, ICAR experts examine how institutions recover assets in practice and what holds them back. The approach examines gaps against European and international standards alongside their underlying causes and the national context. In Romania, this involved desk research, interviews with practitioners and a follow-up visit to validate the findings with national authorities. The assessment covers the full asset recovery process, from investigation and asset tracing to confiscation, management and disposal. Romania has made significant progress, including establishing ANABI and developing the ROARMIS digital system for monitoring seized and confiscated assets. Yet a gap remains between the value of confiscation orders and the amounts ultimately recovered. The report examines contributing factors across the system, including constraints on financial investigations, fragmented asset management responsibilities and limited integration of information systems. Understanding these connections helps authorities and donors identify priorities and direct resources where they can make the greatest difference. It also supports reforms that strengthen cooperation between institutions and improve the system as a whole. Priorities for Romania’s next phase of reform The recommendations will inform Romania’s implementation of the new EU Directive on asset recovery and confiscation and its national asset recovery strategy for 2027–2031. Elena Grăniceru, Director General of ANABI, stated: Today's event brought together, around the same table, all the institutions involved in the identification, seizure, confiscation, management and recovery of the proceeds of crime, alongside our Swiss, European and international partners. The assessment carried out by the experts of the Basel Institute on Governance provides us with an objective benchmark for strengthening Romania's asset recovery system, and our partners' commitment to continue supporting us confirms the strategic nature of this undertaking. ANABI will continue to work with all competent institutions to translate the recommendations into concrete measures. ICAR Director Iker Lekuona confirmed our ongoing assistance: It was a privilege to conduct this assessment, building on our first review of Romania's asset recovery system in 2013. More than a decade on, it is really encouraging to see the progress Romania has made. Commissioning an independent assessment and making its findings public is a further demonstration of the Romanian authorities' commitment to continuous improvement. We look forward to continuing to support them in building an increasingly effective, coordinated and sustainable asset recovery system. How ICAR helps strengthen asset recovery systems The Romanian diagnostic illustrates how ICAR combines legal and operational expertise with a detailed understanding of national institutions to tailor its support. ICAR provides similar hands-on technical assistance to more than 40 agencies across two dozen countries worldwide. The diagnostic forms part of the Swiss-Romanian Cooperation Programme, supported by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation. The initiative also includes training and eLearning programmes for practitioners. Learn more - Read the report on ANABI’s website. - Learn about ICAR’s train-the-trainer programme for Romanian practitioners. - See how ICAR has supported Romanian authorities in developing high-quality eLearning courses.
How Peru is making asset recovery a frontline tool against organised crime
A joint reflection by Iker Lekuona, Director of the Basel Institute's International Centre for Asset Recovery ICAR and Oscar Solórzano, Head of Latin America for ICAR, on how Peru is translating its commitment to combating organised crime into lasting institutional capability. Across Latin America, governments face mounting pressure to respond to organised crime, illicit finance and growing public concerns about security. At the same time, international development budgets are under strain. In this environment, one question keeps resounding: how can countries build capacity to tackle complex criminal threats with greater independence and resilience? For those of us working in asset recovery, the answer lies in institutions. Our goal in building asset recovery capability One of the ambitions behind ICAR’s technical assistance has always been straightforward. We want our partners to reach the point where they no longer rely on us for day-to-day operational support. Our partnerships should evolve towards higher-value strategic collaboration. Technical assistance should leave behind stronger systems, stronger expertise and stronger institutions capable of carrying the work forward independently. This is why recent developments in Peru are particularly significant. A strategic response to financial and organised crime Under the leadership of Attorney General Tomás Aladino Gálvez Villegas, the Public Prosecutor's Office is implementing a series of reforms that embed financial investigation, asset recovery and institutional coordination at the heart of Peru's response to organised crime. The reforms form part of the Sistema Fiscal Integrado de Recuperación de Activos SFIRA or “Integrated Prosecutorial Asset Recovery System”. At a meeting in May this year with Attorney General Gálvez and senior colleagues, we reflected on the challenges posed by modern organised crime and the need for institutions that can respond to increasingly sophisticated illicit financial flows. Regarding the intent behind the reforms, the Attorney General commented: We cannot continue expecting different results while relying on the same institutional approaches. Organised crime has evolved, and so must we. This reform reflects our determination to move beyond declarations of intent and build the permanent capabilities that prosecutors need to confront increasingly sophisticated criminal organisations. Reflecting on impact of the Basel Institute’s technical assistance through ICAR, he said: We value the support that the Basel Institute on Governance has provided over the years, and we invite the Basel Institute, our government institutions and the wider international community to join us in this effort. Confronting organised crime is a shared challenge that requires a shared commitment. This is how we turn commitment into practical action. Having worked closely with the Peruvian authorities for more than a decade, we believe this direction will be transformative for the country and its people. We also believe other jurisdictions can be inspired by this strategic, systemic response. We share some of the reasoning and details below. Organised crime is a financial phenomenon Public debates about organised crime often focus on violence or trafficking. Yet in anti-corruption and asset recovery circles, we all know that criminal organisations survive only because they are able to generate, move, conceal and reinvest enormous sums of money. The financial dimension of organised crime has become increasingly important as criminal groups expand across borders, diversify their activities and develop closer relationships with professional facilitators and corrupt actors. Illegal mining, environmental crime, drug trafficking, corruption and money laundering are frequently connected through the same financial networks. This is one reason why asset recovery has attracted growing attention from governments and international organisations alike. Less-known benefits of focusing on asset recovery Recovering illicit assets is valuable in itself, not least in times of squeezed public budgets and reduced flows of development aid. Confiscated assets can be reinvested in enhancing the capabilities of law enforcement and prosecution authorities. They can also be used to compensate victims and communities affected by corruption and crime. More importantly, the process of conducting financial investigations and pursuing illicit assets helps authorities understand how criminal networks operate, identify those who profit from them and weaken the structures that allow them to endure. This agenda has particular relevance today because it commands broad support across political and ideological divides. Governments may disagree on many issues. The need to tackle organised crime and illicit finance is rarely one of them. What makes the reforms innovative and impactful Experience has also shown that asset recovery cannot remain a specialised activity reserved for exceptional cases. To keep pace with increasingly sophisticated criminal organisations, countries need to move beyond isolated successes and build institutions that make financial investigation and asset recovery part of everyday prosecutorial practice. In Peru, rather than creating another specialised unit, the Public Prosecutor's Office is building an institutional model that brings together the capabilities needed to tackle the financial dimension of organised crime in a more coordinated, multidisciplinary and sustainable way. The model combines specialised operational support for prosecutors, strategic criminal analysis and stronger institutional coordination. At the same time, it seeks to ensure that the knowledge gained through complex investigations is progressively embedded within the organisation. The objective goes beyond success in individual cases. The aim is to strengthen the Public Prosecutor's Office's long-term capacity to investigate, disrupt and recover the proceeds of organised crime. Importantly, the new arrangements will support both international and domestic asset recovery efforts. - International cases remain essential but often require years of litigation and cooperation across multiple jurisdictions. - Domestically, Peru can also do a lot to target criminal assets located within its own borders and to disrupt illicit economies that continue to fuel insecurity and corruption. As part of this effort, the Public Prosecutor's Office is investing its own resources in the new structure, including resources linked to a tripartite asset return agreement between Peru, Luxembourg and Switzerland that was supported by the Basel Institute through ICAR. From technical assistance to national ownership This institutional model reflects capabilities developed over more than a decade of operational cooperation between our ICAR team and the Public Prosecutor's Office. Through joint work on complex investigations, both our institutions developed practical approaches to financial investigation, international asset recovery and multidisciplinary prosecutorial support. The current reforms seek to embed these proven capabilities within the permanent structures of the Public Prosecutor's Office. This will ensure that the knowledge accumulated through years of operational cooperation becomes part of the institution itself rather than remaining dependent on external technical assistance or individual expertise. For donors and development partners, this matters. The value of technical assistance cannot be measured only by assets recovered or training sessions delivered. Its deeper contribution lies in helping institutions develop the confidence, capabilities and structures needed to perform these functions independently and continuously improve them over time. Why this matters beyond Peru Every country must develop solutions that fit its own legal system, institutions and priorities. Yet some lessons travel well. One is that asset recovery works best when it is integrated into broader efforts to combat organised crime rather than treated as a specialised activity operating at the margins of criminal investigations. Another is that sustainable progress depends on institutions. Cases come and go. Leadership changes. Criminal networks evolve. Strong institutions provide continuity. Peru's reforms will not solve every challenge posed by organised crime. No single reform can. But they represent a thoughtful and ambitious attempt to strengthen the state's ability to understand, investigate and disrupt the financial foundations of criminal activity. For us, they also represent something else: evidence that long-term partnerships can create capabilities that endure beyond any individual project. There are few better outcomes for a technical assistance programme than seeing the ideas, methods and expertise it has supported become part of the institutions it set out to strengthen.