Ethics and governance in the European Financial centers

A global conference will take place in Paris about corruption. It will include updates on anti-corruption developments around the world, a roundtable of leading prosecutors, expert discussions of internal investigations and the growing role of auditors in anti-corruption enforcement in Europe, analyses of the year’s major cases and investigations, a workshop on state-of-the art compliance programmes and many more areas.


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Small firms using compliance consultants should act on the advice they are given if it would help them comply with their regulatory requirements, the Financial Services Authority (FSA) said yesterday. The FSA visited 22 small firms employing compliance consultants in early 2007 and found nearly half of them still had significant weaknesses in respect of their regulatory requirements. The work also showed over a third of these firms were not acting on recommendations from their consultants that would have improved their regulatory position


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Factsheet [PDF] designed by the FSA to help small firms select compliance consultants

The FATF published a couple of weeks ago an updated version of the AML/CFT Methodology 2004, including the assessment criteria. This brochure is intended to guide the assessment of a country’s compliance with the international AML/CFT standards as contained in the FATF Forty Recommendations 2003 (updated as of October 2004) and the FATF Nine Special Recommendations on Terrorist Financing 2001 (updated as of February 2006). The criteria within this Methodology do not expand upon or modify the Forty Recommendations and Nine Recommendations which constitute the international standard. The Methodology is a key tool to help assessors when they are preparing AML/CFT detailed assessment reports/mutual evaluation reports. It assists in identifying the systems and mechanisms developed by countries with diverse legal, regulatory and financial frameworks, in order to implement robust AML/CFT systems. The Methodology is also useful for countries that are reviewing their own systems, including in relation to technical assistance projects.

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The Paul Wolfowitz case demonstrates that the Word Bank is actually willing to promote ethics and transparency.
The case does not weaken the credibility of the World Bank as members especially from Europe are taking their responsibilities.
In a world of communication it would have been a mistake to attempt to hide the situation of nepotism that does not comply with the speech against bribery.
A lesson and a warning for many professionals, especially in Luxembourg, that do not implement what they say and deny or hide even public and official dysfunctions.

Know more about the case (source : Financial Times)

Isle of Man Today has reported the reaction of the Island’s Treasury Minister Allan Bell on the research Tax Research and the Tax Justice Network issued recently on the subsidy of £270 million the UK provides to the Isle of Man Government a year. What did the honourable minister have to say?:

In his speech Mr Bell said the article [in the Observer] had been initiated by the Tax Justice Network which he described as a ‘motley crew doing their very best to stir up resentment against not just the Isle of Man but off-shore jurisdictions in general.’

‘They (the Tax Justice Network] will use every opportunity to undermine the Island and try to damage our economy,’ he said. ‘We do need to keep an eye on these sort of bodies as well.’

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XBRL is a language for the electronic communication of business and financial data which is revolutionising business reporting around the world. It provides major benefits in the preparation, analysis and communication of business information. It offers cost savings, greater efficiency and improved accuracy and reliability to all those involved in supplying or using financial data.

Ten institutions has decided to implement the standard in Luxembourg :
- the Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier (CSSF),
- the Banque Centrale du Luxembourg (BCL),
- the Commissariat aux Assurances (CAA),
- the Association des Banques et Banquiers, Luxembourg (ABBL),
- the Association Luxembourgeoise des Fonds d’Investissement (ALFI),
- the Association des Compagnies d’Assurances, Luxembourg (ACA),
- the Institut des Réviseurs d’Entreprises (IRE),
- the Ordre des Experts Comptables (OEC),
- the Service Central de la Statistique et des Études économiques (STATEC) et
- the Société de la Bourse de Luxembourg S.A. (BdL).

This is a very good initiative to enhance financial reporting in Luxembourg.

See press release (in French)
Know more about XBRL

The Institute of International Finance, Inc. (IIF), is the world's only global association of financial institutions. Created in 1983 in response to the international debt crisis, the IIF has evolved to meet the changing needs of the financial community.
The Institute of International Finance is committed to being the most influential global association of financial institutions. It has recently requested to be associated to the IMF works about the financial sector
When one looks on the website the keyword "AML", we have 0 results found for "AML"
When one looks on the website the keyword "laundering", we have 4 results found for "AML" (actually 3)
The topic may not be a concern despite a recent report.

Know more about the IIF
See press release "Financial Market Innovations Call for Intensified Cooperation Between Officials and Leaders of Private Finance "Know more See press release about their AML-CFT program

FIU.NET is a decentralised computer network designed to connect (EU) Financial Intelligence Units (FIUs) using modern technology and computers to (bilaterally) share financial intelligence information. FIU.NET encourages co-operation, and enables FIUs to exchange financial intelligence quickly, securely, and effectively. The main purpose of this increased co-operation is to enhance the fight against organised crime and the misuse of the financial system for the purpose of money laundering and terrorism financing.

Currently the body is paralysed as it is waiting for clarity about the future funding by the European Commission.

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Since the begining of the year, several cases of money laundering were in the media in Malta and the justice is doing its job.

See recent articles from The Malta Independant:

Another Panamanian national was charged yesterday with money laundering involving a sum of about Lm10,000. (31/03/07)

Court: First case of money laundering in the Criminal Court: Woman jailed for six years (30/03/07)

Court: Foreigner charged with money laundering (29/03/07)

Four face £1.4m in money-laundering charges (20/01/07)

Court: Criminal Court imposes stiffer bail conditions (05/01/07)

For the first time, an unhappy candidate for a licence of banker that did not accept the decision of the CSSF that contested his professional standing went to the administrative jurisdiction and won (Judgement dated 26 March).

The decision of the tribunal may be the consequence of a lack of transparency of the CSSF in its criteria to assess the professional standing and therefore the banker was able to demonstrate that the decision was not fair.

Source Land, dated 30 March 2007