Money Laundering

Money laundering is an offence in its own right — but it is also closely related to other forms of serious and organised crime as well as the financing of terrorism.

In addition to organised criminal groups, professional money launderers perform money laundering services on behalf of others as their core business.

The scale of money laundering is difficult to assess, but it is considered to be significant. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) estimates that between 2 and 5% of global GDP is laundered each year. That’s between EUR 715 billion and 1.87 trillion each year.

Most organised crime shares a common denominator — the financial motive. Organised crime groups boost their assets and then inject them into the legal economy through different money laundering schemes. Tracing these assets means tracing the networks.

Enhancing access to financial information by law enforcement and supporting law enforcement fight against criminal finances.

Terrorists and criminals have demonstrated their ability to transfer funds quickly between different banks, often in different countries, but lack of timely access to financial information means that many investigations come to a dead end. There is therefore a clear need to enhance cooperation between authorities responsible for combating terrorism and serious crime when financial information is a key part of an investigation.