This working paper is based on an empirical investigation of corruption and illicit exchange related to the so-called “Lava Jato” or “Odebrecht” scandal. Focusing on former Peruvian President Alejandro Toledo and his laundering of bribes obtained from the construction giant Odebrecht, the analysis aims to test the usefulness of applying a network lens to better understand the mechanisms underlying grand corruption cases.
Money laundering risks evolve fast, as do the tools and data available to assess them. That is why the Basel AML Index – the Basel Institute’s flagship index of money laundering risks around the world – updates its methodology every year, following an in-depth review with a group of experts from diverse backgrounds.
Twenty-five practitioners from 12 countries gathered online on 29 June for the first virtual meeting of the new Knowledge Community on Asset Recovery in Latin America.
An initiative of the Basel Institute’s International Centre for Asset Recovery, the regional Knowledge Community provides a collaborative space for interaction between leading practitioners in the field of asset recovery and international judicial cooperation in criminal matters.
This quick guide explains how investigators and prosecutors can use Source and Application of Funds analysis to inform corruption and money laundering investigations and prosecutions and to generate evidence for use in court.
The method enables anti-corruption officers to build financial profiles of suspects by systematically calculating the amount of money that the suspect has accumulated and spent during a particular period, compared to their legal and known income.
At a Basel Institute-hosted webinar on illicit enrichment on 30 June 2021, practitioners from Uganda, Kenya and Mauritius agreed that illicit enrichment laws have significant potential to help their countries – and others – target corruption and recover stolen assets. But, they say, significant hurdles still need to be overcome, especially in transnational cases.
How do illegal wildlife products, live animals, exotic marine species and illegally logged timber end up in stores, zoos, aquariums and homes on the other side of the world?
Too easily, is the answer. Weaknesses in global supply chains make them vulnerable to exploitation by organised crime groups and bad actors working in legitimate businesses. Corruption opens the door to that exploitation. And the easy possibilities for laundering money from environmental crimes makes this illicit activity attractive to criminals around the world.
At a high-profile speech at the Ukraine 30 Forum last week, the Basel Institute's Managing Director Gretta Fenner emphasised that it is critical that Ukraine swiftly and professionally concludes the asset recovery processes started after the Revolution of Dignity. She also urged the country to fully empower its anti-corruption institutions and reduce the hurdles that have been put in their ways. High levels of corruption continue to drain the country's resources and threaten its democracy.
We are delighted to have signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) in Zambia.
Under the new partnership, our International Centre for Asset Recovery (ICAR) will support the Commission’s efforts to investigate and prosecute corruption cases and to identify and recover stolen assets. This includes support for international cooperation to obtain intelligence and evidence from abroad.
The following statement by the Basel Institute's Managing Director, Gretta Fenner, was aired at the Special Session of the UN General Assembly against Corruption on 4 June 2021. Watch the video here.
Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
I thank you for the opportunity to deliver a short statement on behalf of the Basel Institute on Governance.