FATF-XXIII Calendar of Events (July 2011 – June 2012)

The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) year begins in July and ends in June. During this period, the FATF holds three plenary meetings, a meeting of experts on typologies and, depending on the focus of current work, inter-session meetings and meetings of various ad hoc groups. The plenary meetings usually take place in October, February and June of each year.

Most FATF Plenaries take place in the conference facilities of the OECD in Paris. The meeting of experts on typologies takes place in November of each year and is usually now held jointly with an FATF-style regional body in the country chosen by that body. All of these meetings are only open to delegations from FATF members, observer jurisdictions and observer organizations. They are not open to the public.

The FATF Calendar of Events includes the major FATF meetings along with the meetings of other FATF-style regional bodies and some international organizations that also deal with money laundering issues.

Risks and Responses to Organized Crime: Moving Beyond Cash

(Presentation by Jeanne M. Flemming, Director, Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada, to the International Symposium on Economic Crime, Cambridge, England, September 7, 2011)

“The world continues to turn, and organized crime continues to mutate. In its 2010 report on organized crime, the Criminal Intelligence Service of Canada noted the changing nature of organized crime in Canada. Traditionally, organized crime was understood as a hierarchical structure comprised of culturally homogeneous groups, citing the examples of Italian, Russian or Albanian mafia. The new reality they describe is one where many organized crime groups are loosely structured, competitive networks with fluid linkages between members and associates, with a diverse range of leadership structures. I can confirm that we are seeing increasing evidence of these fluid structures in our own cases.”

“What is more, organized crime once involved cash-based crimes almost exclusively. As a response, anti-money laundering regimes were developed to combat the illegal profits from the illicit narcotics trade and the organized criminal networks that rose to global prominence three or four decades ago. The infusion of that criminal cash into the financial system was a grave risk that demanded a response. It gave rise to the creation of financial intelligence units, like the one that I head. It also brought regulatory controls and compliance obligations that will be familiar to those of you who work in banking, insurance and securities. In essence, what we have now is a system that was built to address that particular risk. The rules, like the crimes they were meant to address, were largely focused on cash transactions.”

“The question that it begs is: how well does such a system address other risks? In practical terms, can a system of rules intended to keep drug money out of the financial system be effective in addressing the risks posed by offences such as fraud and corruption or any number of other profit motivated crimes loosely grouped under the rubric of “white-collar crime?”

Laundering the Proceeds of Corruption

The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has prepared a study, Laundering the Proceeds of Corruption, to show the links between corruption and money laundering. This typology report differs from other such typologies previously produced by the FATF because it draws from publicly available work undertaken by experts. The goal of the project was to better understand corruption, its mechanisms and vulnerabilities, through an AML/CFT lens.


The report identifies key vulnerabilities within the current framework and discusses some of the obstacles to the recovery of corruption. In addition to providing the basis for further examination of related issues, the report will serve as the catalyst for future FATF work in developing guidance or best practices on measures relevant to combating corruption. The FATF will continue to work on issues related to the use of tools in the fight against corruption (also refer to the report on the FATF’s Focus on Corruption).

Stupid fraud tricks

“It’s not uncommon to glamorize fraudsters. They are often clever, charming and cunning. Their schemes are frequently brilliant and breathtakingly bold. Even the words “con artists” used to describe them bestow a degree of respect and admiration for their accomplishments, immoral and illegal though they may be. Not all fraudsters, however, are deserving of our reluctant praise. In fact, for every Frank Abagnale, the master of fraud and false identity portrayed in the film Catch Me If You Can by actor Leonardo DiCaprio, there are myriad examples of bungling, clumsy and downright stupid fraudsters. In fact, the inept ones are more common than the inspired schemers. Nonetheless, they do evoke a certain response from fraud investigators — comic relief.”

(Read the article “Stupid fraud tricks” in the August 2011 issue of CAmagazine online.)

Money Laundering in Canada

Some authorities, including the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), have found that money laundering is often related to organized criminal and/or terrorist activity. In recent years, the issue of money laundering has been highlighted as an emerging problem both in Canada and internationally. In Canada, it is estimated that the amount of money laundered on an annual basis is somewhere between $5 and $15 billion. Worldwide, it has been estimated that this figure may be $900 billion to $2.25 trillion (RCMP – Money Laundering, 2011).

According to the Criminal Code, money laundering, also referred to as laundering proceeds of crime, occurs when an individual or group uses, transfers, sends, delivers, transports, transmits, alters, disposes of or otherwise deals with, any property or proceeds of any property that was obtained as a result of criminal activity. This is done with the intent to conceal or convert illegal assets into legitimate funds.

An example of money laundering would involve a person who sells illegal drugs, and then uses the profit to purchase legal goods to sell through a legitimate business. Previous research suggests that money laundering schemes are often associated with the illegal drug trade or the defrauding and manipulation of Canada’s financial institutions.

(To learn more, see the Statistics Canada website and the June 2011 publication Money laundering in Canada, 2009.)

Money Laundering and Terrorist Activity Financing Watch

The Money Laundering and Terrorist Activity Financing Watch presents a quarterly review of news articles summarizing relevant group-based, activity-based and country-based money laundering and terrorist activity financing issues, and alerts readers to new financial mechanisms or technologies that could possibly be exploited for money laundering or terrorist activity financing purposes in Canada. (Caveat: The content is a summary of news articles and does not include any FINTRAC analysis. The views expressed are those of the authors. FINTRAC is not responsible for the accuracy, currency or the reliability of the content. References are provided to the respective articles at the end of this document.)

Read: Money Laundering and Terrorist Activity Financing Watch:January-March 2011

History of the FATF (1990-2010)

In response to mounting concern over money laundering, the Financial Action Task Force on Money Laundering (FATF) was established by the G-7 Summit that was held in Paris in 1989.  Recognizing the threat posed to the banking system and to financial institutions, the G-7 Heads of State or Government and President of the European Commission convened the Task Force from the G-7 member States, the European Commission and eight other countries.

The Task Force was given the responsibility of examining money laundering techniques and trends, reviewing the action which had already been taken at a national or international level, and setting out the measures that still needed to be taken to combat money laundering.  In April 1990, less than one year after its creation, the FATF issued a report containing a set of Forty Recommendations, which provide a comprehensive plan of action needed to fight against money laundering.

In 2001, the development of standards in the fight against terrorist financing was added to the mission of the FATF.  In October 2001 the FATF issued the Eight Special Recommendations to deal with the issue of terrorist financing.  The continued evolution of money laundering techniques led the FATF to revise the FATF standards comprehensively in June 2003.  In October 2004 the FATF published a Ninth Special Recommendation, further strengthening the agreed international standards for combating money laundering and terrorist financing - the 40+9 Recommendations.

To learn more, read the publication 20 Years of the FATF Recommendations 1990-2010.