Communique on the Annual Report of the Financial Information Authority, 2012

Vatican City
May 22, 2013

http://attualita.vatican.va/sala-stampa/bollettino/2013/05/22/news/31044.html#Testo%20in%20lingua%20inglese

The Autoritа di Informazione Finanziara (AIF) of the Holy See and the Vatican City State has published and presented its first ever Annual Report to the public.

The report reviews the activities and statistics of AIF for full year 2012.

Over the course of the year, AIF reported the submission of 6 Suspicious Transaction Reports, up from only one in the previous year. AIF itself forwarded two Suspicious Transaction Reports to the Vatican Promoter of Justice for further investigation.

"The statistics and trends from 2012 are encouraging and indicates that the system is consistently improving" said Rene Brьlhart, Director of AIF.

In 2012, AIF has also initiated the systematic screening and analysis of Cash Transaction Reports submitted by the obliged entities.

"In our efforts to tackle actively any potential abuse of the financial system, we initiated a close and constructive interaction with the Secretariat of State, the Gendarmeria, the Promoter of Justice and the institutions under our oversight in order to improve awareness and safety and ensure a coordinated internal cooperation in AML/CFT matters", said Director Brьlhart.

A further important element of the report is the progress made in international cooperation that builds on the clear commitment of the Holy See to be a credible partner in the international fight against money laundering. 2012 saw the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding with relevant authorities in Belgium and Spain. "It will continue to be our policy in 2013 to further strengthening international cooperation by signing several more Memorandum of Understanding with our partners in other relevant countries and jurisdictions" said Rene Brьlhart.

The outlook for 2013 foresees a further strengthening of the AML/CFT system including the implementation of Moneyval Recommendations through appropriate new or amended legislation and a continuation of the awareness enhancing process across all relevant authorities and institutions.

AIF is the competent authority of the Holy See and the Vatican City State for financial intelligence and for supervision and regulation in the prevention and countering of money laundering and financing of terrorism. AIF was established in 2010 and became operational in April of 2011.