Ethics and governance in the European Financial centers

AFP has reported that Monaco has hired a trio of public relations experts to help the Mediterranean principality shed its image as an international tax haven, officials said the day ebfore yesterday.

Reuters has reported that Monaco will soon join moves to relax bank secrecy, following Belgium, Liechtenstein, Andorra, Switzerland, Austria, Luxembourg and others.

I will develop in the following days the situation in this jurisdiction that is smaller than Luxembourg, with a special responsibility for France.

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Anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) was highlighted by the Council of Europe Moneyval Committee’s adoption of the third round mutual evaluation report on the Principality of Monaco, which was prepared following IMF and FATF methodology.

The report follows the on-site visit of financial and legal experts in the Principality in 2006. It states among others that "the Principality has a satisfactory legal framework to combat money laundering and terrorist financing.” […] Overall, the Monegasque FIU is effective and the driving force behind the AML/CFT national efforts. Monaco has designated competent authorities to investigate and prosecute money laundering and terrorist financing offences […]. Measures for domestic and international co-operation are generally comprehensive as well. "

It is said page 12 that 381 declarations of suspicion were reported in 2007, of which 213 from banks (56%).
It seems that there are no declarations from registerd auditors but chartered accountants reported 7 declarations.
In 2007, the number of Suspicious Transaction Reports received by SICCFIN slightly dropped by 3.5% (395 declarations in 2006).

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