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.
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.
Gemma Aiolfi, Head of Compliance, Corporate Governance and Collective Action at the Basel Institute on Governance, took part in a dialogue on Anti-Corruption Compliance and Collective Action organised by the Malaysian Institute of Management (MIM).
The invitation-only event took place in the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday, 30 October 2018. It is part of the institute's Crucial Conversations@MIM series.
The Basel Institute on Governance has partnered with Zurich-based MME to offer a training course on blockchain, cryptocurrencies and anti-money laundering/countering the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT). The two-day course, FinTech AML Compliance Training, covers the essentials of blockchain and how to adapt AML/CFT processes to the FinTech industry.
Around 60 justice officials, including judges and prosecutors, from the Peruvian provinces of San Martín and Piura, have participated in a training course entitled "Studies on Asset Recovery and International Judicial Cooperation in Corruption and Other Financial Crimes".
The Basel Institute on Governance and Ecuador's Financial and Economic Analysis Unit (Unidad de Análisis Financiero y Económico, UAFE) have signed a Case Consultancy Agreement. The agreement, signed on 29 November during the Basel Institute's third mission to Quito, sets out general lines of mutual cooperation in areas related to the fight against corruption, money laundering and other financial crimes.
The Basel Institute is providing anti-corruption guidance services to SMEs as part of the UK government's pioneering Business Integrity Initiative.
Subsidised by the UK Department for International Development (DFID) for eligible SMEs, the guidance services are focused on:
- Anti-corruption compliance
- Corruption and bribery prevention
- Anti-corruption Collective Action
Find out more about the services and how to apply for support.