FIN.

Damning report on EU AML efforts

The European Court of Auditors has published a damning report on the EU’s efforts to fight money laundering in the banking sector.  A review found institutional fragmentation and poor coordination at EU level. The ECA says EU bodies have limited tools to ensure sufficient national application of AML/CFT frameworks. It is also critical of the lack of single EU supervisor, noting the EU’s powers are split between several bodies and co-ordination with Member States is carried out separately.

It commented that the EBA has only made one positive finding of breach of EU AML laws since 2010 and has not carried out a related investigation on its own initiative. The ECA also found evidence that high-level EBA decision-making may have been influenced by national interests and that the European Commission has no internal guidance for triggering a request for an investigation to the EBA, so that this happens only ad hoc and apparently mainly following media reports.

It has made several recommendations to remedy these failings.

Emma Radmore