Financial market regulator does not possess mechanisms for preventing money laundering

The National Financial Market Commission (CNPF) does not have mechanisms for preventing money laundering, the parliamentary commission on economy, budget and finance ascertained after questioning representatives of the institution’s administration over the raider attack cases during about two hours on Monday. Though a part of the representatives said the Commission did not react promptly to stop the fraudulent transactions, the opposition MPs consider the situation is the result of the settling of accounts between the members of the ruling alliance, Info-Prim Neo reports. The commission’s chairman, Liberal-Democrat MP Veaceslav Ionita said the CNPF does not possess a mechanism for identifying and combating raider attacks, does not follow the market and does not report to the Financial Stability Committee. There is no mechanism concerning the over-the-counter market. Four of the five transactions took place on the over-the-counter market, but we cannot intervene. The Commission has a budget of almost 5 million lei and we wonder where this money goes. We have no mechanism for identifying raider attacks,” said the lawmaker. He added that a report will be produced at the next meeting to inform the Parliament, which is to decide what will happen to the CNPF. Aurica Doina, a member of the Administration Board of the CNPF, said all the measures were taken to suspend these transactions. “The CNPF does not support the statements made earlier by MPs. The given problem was generated by courts as the transactions were based on court decisions,” she stated. Democrat lawmaker Valeriu Guma, who is a member of the commission, said that the legislation will be amended after the situation is examined so as to provide more possibilities of combating swindles. Communist MP Igor Dodon, who also forms part of the commission, said we witness settling of accounts, stressing such situations did not exit three years ago. “The ruling alliance has control over all the state institutions and a majority of seats in Parliament and could any time stop the attempts to destabilize the banking sector. They did nothing because they did not want to. The ordinary people suffer the consequences. We lose foreign investors. The AEI and the political algorithm that does not allow taking efficient decisions are to blame,” he stated. The administration of the National Financial Market Commission was also questioned on September 13 after Prime Minister Vlad Filat on September 5 announced that four banks had been the target of raider attacks.