Larissa Gray - Böcker

In recent years, revelations of grand corruption and the plunder of state assets have led to greater scrutiny of financial relationships with politically exposed persons (PEPs) - senior government officials, family members and close associates - and potential money laundering risks associated with these customers. Notwithstanding the efforts by many financial institutions and regulatory authorities to prevent corrupt PEPs from entering and using the financial system to launder the proceeds of corruption, there has been an overall failure in the effective implementation of risk-based systems to detect corruption proceeds. Politically Exposed Persons: A Guide to Strengthening Preventive Measures for the Banking Sector is designed to help banks and regulatory authorities address the risks posed by PEPs and prevent corrupt PEPs from abusing domestic and international financial systems to launder the proceeds of corruption. The book provides recommendations and good practices aimed at improving compliance with international standards and increasing supervisory effectiveness.Implementation of an effective PEP regime is a critical component of the prevention and detection of transfers of proceeds of crime and, therefore, ultimately in the process of recovering these proceeds of corruption. The United Nations Convention against Corruption and the Financial Action Task Force Forty Recommendations on Money Laundering require countries to ensure that financial institutions implement systems to identify and verify PEP customers, enhance due diligence procedures at account opening, and provide ongoing monitoring of transactions. Politically Exposed Persons: A Guide to Strengthening Preventive Measures for the Banking Sector will be an important tool for individuals, governments, financial and private sector companies, and international organizations involved in developing and implementing standards aimed at fighting corruption and money laundering, and trying to recover stolen assets and the proceeds of corruption.

Developing countries lose an estimated US$20-40 billion each year through bribery, misappropriation of funds, and other corrupt practices. Much of the proceeds of this corruption find “safe haven” in the world’s financial centers. These criminal flows are a drain on social services and economic development programs, contributing to the impoverishment of the world’s poorest countries. Many developing countries have already sought to recover stolen assets. A number of successful high-profile cases with creative international cooperation have demonstrated that asset recovery is possible. However, it is highly complex, involving coordination and collaboration with domestic agencies and ministries in multiple jurisdictions, as well as the capacity to trace and secure assets and pursue various legal options—whether criminal confiscation, non-conviction based confiscation, civil actions, or other alternatives. This process can be overwhelming for even the most experienced of practitioners. It is exceptionally difficult for those working in the context of failed states, widespread corruption, or limited resources. With this in mind, the Stolen Asset Recovery (StAR) Initiative has developed the Asset Recovery Handbook: A Guide for Practitioners to guide those grappling with the strategic, organizational, investigative, and legal challenges of recovering stolen assets. A practitioner-led project, the Handbook provides common approaches to recovering stolen assets located in foreign jurisdictions, identifies the challenges that practitioners are likely to encounter, and introduces good practices. Included are examples of tools that can be used by practitioners, such as sample intelligence reports, applications for court orders, and mutual legal assistance requests.

It is estimated that the proceeds of crime, corruption and tax evasion represent between $1 trillion and $1.6 trillion per year, with half coming from developing countries. Proceeds are typically transferred abroad and hidden in foreign jurisdictions, thus requiring international cooperation. Various international conventions and agreements require international cooperation on this issue, in particular the United Nations Convention against Corruption; however, only $5 billion in stolen assets have been repatriated over the last 15 years. This enormous gap reveals that significant barriers continue to impede asset recovery despite the commitments taken by governments, civil society and the private sector. Drawing on the experience of practitioners with hands-on experience, the Stolen Asset Recovery (StAR) Initiative launched this study to identify the barriers to stolen asset recovery internationally, provide brief analysis of the impact of these barriers, and propose recommendations for overcoming these obstacles. This volume is intended to guide policy makers in their efforts to ensure necessary resources and the development of a plan, policy or strategy aimed at eradicating the barriers to asset recovery. In addition, this study proposes actions to be taken by the G20, international organizations, financial institutions, developmental agencies and civil society.

Corruption has a devastating impact on developing and transitional countries. An estimated $20 billion to $40 billion per year are stolen by public officials from developing and transition country jurisdictions, a figure equivalent to 20 to 40 percent of flows of official development assistance. Returning these proceeds of corruption – asset recovery – can have a significant development impact. Returns can be used directly for development purposes – improvements in the health and education sectors, re-integration of displaced persons – with additional benefits of improved international cooperation and enhanced capacity of law enforcement and financial management officials. Development agencies and those committed to development effectiveness have a role in the asset recovery process. They have made international commitments to fight corruption and recover the proceeds of corruption in the Third High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness: Accra Agenda for Actions, held in Accra (2008); and Fourth High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness: Partnership for Effective Development Co-operation in Busan (2011). Despite these efforts, there has been difficulty in translating these commitments into concrete action. This StAR-OECD publication reports on how OECD countries are performing on asset recovery and is intended to support the anti-corruption and asset recovery efforts of developed and developing jurisdictions. Drawing on data collected between 2006 and 2012, the report provides recommendations and highlights good practices and specific actions that development agencies can take. Its findings and recommendations would also be of interest to civil society organizations engaged in governance and development issues.