Money Laundering in Albania

• Pages: 130-142

Vol. 7 No. 2

July, 2021

Academic Journal of Business, Administration, Law and Social Sciences

IIPCCL Publishing, Graz-Austria

ISSN 2410-3918

Acces online at www.iipccl.org

130

Money Laundering in Albania

Lealba Pelinku

University of Tirana, Albania

Abstract

TheCommiee ofExperts onthe Evaluationof Anti-MoneyLaundering Measuresand the

Financing of Terrorism (MONEYVAL) held on 28 to 30 April 2021, in Strasbourg, its 61st

PlenarySession,adoptingthe2ndEnhancedFollow-upreportonAlbania.

Also the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) amended almost all its normative acts this last

year, mainly because of the exposure to the risk of virtual assets or even the pandemics.

This article will try to describe the main policies and institutions involved in anti-money

launderingintheEUandAlbania,withtheaimtocontributeinfacilitatingtheknowledgeand

interpretation, as a consequence, the MONEYVAL, and such entities, processes and products.

Keywords: Albania, institutions, legislation, money laundering.

Introduction

It is in human nature for man to benet. The more this human weakness is

institutionalized,themoreittakesrootandthemoredicultitistorepairthedamage,

andfurtherdeveloprightfulness.TheCovidsituationprovesonceagainhowtough

thestruggleforsurvivalinpoorcountriesbecomesandhowvulnerablethecountry

becomestoillegalactivities,despitethepresenceofdeath.ThroughthispaperIwant

to summarize the main institutions, the policies that these institutions produce and

followandwhereAlbaniastandsinthesepolicies,inordertoraiseawarenessonthe

importanceofvaluing“dirty”moneyintheeconomywherewemadethedecisionto

liveandwork.

Main institutions and policies of anti-money laundering

Oneofthe2maininstitutionthatdealwithillegalactivitiesofmoneylaunderingand

terroristnancingare:The FinancialActionTaskForce(global)andTheCommiee

of Experts on the Evaluation of Anti-Money Laundering Measures and the Financing

of Terrorism (European).

The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) is an inter-governmental body that

determines international standards to prevent illegal activities of global money

launderingandterrorist nancingandthe harmtheycause tosociety.Itisapolicy

makingbodythatgeneratepoliticalwilltobeimplementedinthenationallegislative

and regulatory reforms to help authorities go after the money of criminals dealing

inillegaldrugs,humantrackingandothercrimes,aswellasfundingforweapons

of mass destruction. It has more than 200 countries and jurisdictions commied

to implementing the FATF Recommendations, whichensure a co-ordinate global

response to prevent organized crime, corruption and terrorism. The FATF continuously