Înapoi Azerbaijani banks and investment companies learn about money laundering and terrorism financing risks related to virtual assets

Azerbaijani banks and investment companies learn about money laundering and terrorism financing risks related to virtual assets

In co-operation with the Financial Monitoring Service of Azerbaijan (FMS), the Council of Europe organised a two-day training course for 42 representatives of banks and investment companies, and FMS staff members, to introduce them to key concepts on virtual assets and virtual asset service providers, draw their attention to associated money laundering and terrorism financing threats and demonstrate ways to improve cyber security and mitigate such risks.

The training offered a combination of national and international interventions, presenting technical specifics of digital and virtual assets, basics of blockchain technologies, cryptocurrencies, wallets, tokens, as well as focusing on the international standards of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) in relation to virtual assets and their implementation mechanisms for reporting entities, including red flag indicators related to virtual assets and virtual asset service providers. The training sessions allowed to reiterate the importance of a robust compliance programme, aiming to determine virtual asset risk exposures and take necessary regulatory enforcement actions.

Considering the fast-evolving sector of virtual assets, participants were equipped with knowledge and skills on how to detect suspicious transactions involving proceeds potentially illegally originating from online platforms and understand factors to consider while performing customer due diligence for transactions in virtual currencies. The training was enriched with illustrations from real cases on criminal use of virtual assets, which demonstrated certain control gaps and failures to capture necessary data, as well as measures needed to mitigate such risks. This initiative contributes to enhancing the government’s efforts to better respond to money laundering threats related to virtual assets.

This event was organised within the framework of the project “Strengthening anti-money laundering and asset recovery in Azerbaijan,” funded by the European Union and the Council of Europe and implemented by the Council of Europe in their Partnership for Good Governance II.

Azerbaijan 6-7 December 2021
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Strasbourg, France Strasbourg, 1-2 July 2024
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Addressing hate speech and hate crime: regional gathering of the network of Equality Bodies from the Western Balkans and the Eastern Partnership Region

A two-day workshop on addressing hate speech and hate crime took place at the premises of the Council of Europe in Strasbourg, involving Equality bodies from the Western Balkans and the Eastern Partnership regions.  The event supported by the EU and Council of Europe, gathered 50 representatives from both regions who discussed and exchanged on the best practices, measures and common challenges when addressing hate speech and hate crime. Through monitoring and reporting, policy advocacy, raising awareness and supporting victims equality bodies play a fundamental role in protecting human rights and ensuring that all individuals are treated equally.

In her opening remarks, Angela Longo, Head of Anti-discrimination Co-operation Unit, Council of Europe, underlined the significant progress in engaging with Equality Bodies through this network, regularly exchanging best practices and addressing the challenges of hatred and intolerance in societies. She highlighted that this new chapter of discussion delves into the grey area between hate speech and hate crime, addressing issues of incitement and biases,

Representatives from Equality Bodies had the opportunity to discuss and enhance their knowledge on the Council of Europe's Committee of Ministers Recommendation to member States on combating hate crime, adopted on 7th May 2024, as well as gain a clearer understanding of EU standards in the field of hate crime. Moreover, participants engaged in exchanges with peers from the Spanish Observatory on Racism and Xenophobia (OBERAXE), who shared insights on addressing hate speech in the public discourse. The National Office Against Racial Discrimination (UNAR) in Italy provided practical examples for developing counter-narratives and raising awareness initiatives.

They also explored opportunities to advocate for legislative reform, foster multisectoral co-operation, enhance data collection, and overall improve national mechanisms to counter hate crimes.

This seminar was organised within the action “Promoting equality and combating racism and intolerance in the Western Balkans” and the project “Promoting equality and non-discrimination: towards more resilient and inclusive societies” – co-funded by the European Union and the Council of Europe, and implemented by the Council of Europe  under the joint Programmes “Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Türkiye” and “Partnership for Good Governance”.

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