The draft law on the prevention and combating of money laundering and terrorism financing needs to be subject to a multilateral risk assessment, with the involvement of civil society experts and experts from the professional business sector. The measures defined in the bill, the risks associated with violations and the package of penalties should be appraised, considers economist of the Independent Analytical Center “Expert-Grup” Sergiu Gaibu, who analyzed the given legislative initiative.

In a news conference at IPN, Sergiu Gaibu said that before being voted in the second reading, it is important for the bill on the prevention and combating of money laundering and terrorism financing to incorporate the best practices concerning the identification of final beneficiaries and determination of suspect transactions and precautionary measures in relation to clients. This can be ensured by fully transposing all the provisions of the EU directive.

According to the expert, in the current form the bill does not envision the creation of a national register with data about the real beneficiaries of legal entities. The competent authorities should have access to the national registers in real time and this could contribute to consolidating authorities’ efforts in the fight against hidden beneficiaries and offshore companies. The creation of national registers is a pillar of the new directive. Consequently, the transposition of this provision to the national legislation should be a priority.

It is especially important to create a national register for keeping a record of effective beneficiaries of legal entities and this can strengthen the authorities’ efforts to fight hidden beneficiaries and offshore companies.

Sergiu Gaibu noted that particular aspects of the bill, especially those regarding currency exchange facilities, go beyond the provisions of the EU directive. This will generate additional bureaucratic procedures without efficiently fighting money laundering.

According to him, it is essential to review the mechanism for governing the Money Laundering Prevention and Combating Service for ensuring coherent administration of the measures taken to achieve the objectives of the law.