The Money Laundering Reporting Office Switzerland (MROS) has published its Annual Report 2020. Highlights from this report are discussed below.
The MROS recognizes that 2020 was an especially challenging year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the introduction of the new goAML information system helped overcome part of the challenge. The goAML system has become established among financial intermediaries, allowing over 90% of the SARs to be submitted electronically. However, the MROS acknowledges that the system requires substantial improvements to realize its full potential of goAML.
MROS received 5334 Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) in 2020, which is over 25% more than the reports it received in 2019. However, MROS’ report points out that this rate of increase is similar to the ones it noted in 2018 and 2019. In 58% of the SARs that the MROS received in 2020, the predicate offence was fraud, registering a 25% increase as compared to 2019. Over 1000 of the SARs filed in 2020 were related to fraud involving government-backed loans that financial institutions had granted. As a result, authorities opened hundreds of criminal investigations related to such cases. Transaction monitoring was the primary reason why financial intermediaries could identify and communicate their suspicions through SARs.
Additionally, MROS developed thematic typologies to shed light on ML/TF and organized crime-related risks. This strategy allows to create risk awareness among financial intermediaries. The 2020 annual report also provides statistics on the MROS’ exchange of information with national and international authorities. Exchange of information improved in 2020, particularly because in September 2020, Switzerland amended its AML Act to grant more information sharing powers to the MROS.