FSVC will tackle key vulnerabilities in the counterterrorism finance systems of the target countries, based on the respective shortcomings identified in the respective Moneyval evaluations, national risk assessments, and consultations with relevant authorities in charge of AML/CTF supervision.
FSVC’s program focuses on the following objectives:
o Enhance the Financial Intelligence Unit’s (FIU) and other key supervisory authorities’ understanding and assessment of terrorism financing (TF) risks in potentially vulnerable sectors, focusing particularly on non-banking financial institutions (NBFIs) and non-profit organizations (NPOs)
o Strengthen the coordination between the FIU, the Bank of Albania (BoA) and the Albanian Financial Supervisory Authority (AFSA) to enhance supervision of TF risks in the financial system
o Improve efficiency in the allocation of supervisory resources to successfully tackle sectoral TF risks, with a special focus on the NPO sector
o Strengthen NBFIs, the FIU and non-profit organizations’ AML/CFT compliance and detection methods
o Deepen the effectiveness of CFT measures beyond mere compliance by introducing requirements on self-assessment of TF risks by reporting entities
Program Impact
o FSVC developed a TF vulnerability assessment methodology for NPOs.
o FSVC designed a template for reporting entities to assess their exposure to ML/TF risks and apply relevant mitigation and control processes in response to their risk profile. This template was shared with 1,380 reporting entities, including 12 banks, 430 notaries, 247 construction companies, 353 foreign exchange bureaus, 64 NBFIs, and 141 accountants, among others. This encompasses virtually the entire banking sector and non-bank financial sector of the country.
o FSVC developed guidelines for the FIU so that they can train reporting entities and provide them practical recommendations to strengthen compliance. To date, the FIU has trained 500 representatives of reporting entities and has conducted 107 examinations of such entities, using FSVC’s guidelines in addition to its existing supervisory procedures.