September 23, 2024 – Effective international cooperation is paramount to the success of the fight against money laundering, associated predicate offences and terrorist financing. The Egmont Group’s commitment to international cooperation is fundamental. It is built on a solid foundation of mutual trust ensuring that member Financial Intelligence Units (FIUs) comply with high standards of accountability towards the protection and confidentiality of the financial intelligence being exchanged.
To guarantee such high standards are observed, the Egmont Group Charter requires member FIUs to remain autonomous and operationally independent. They must remain free from any undue political, government, or industry influence or interference which might compromise its operational independence and put fellow member FIUs at risk of exposure to sensitive data breaches or breaches of confidentiality.
Due to recent actions involving FIU Colombia and the unauthorised disclosure of information provided by one of our members, the Egmont Group Heads of FIU have confirmed the suspension of FIU Colombia’s access to the Egmont Secure Web (ESW), which is the secure network used by our 177 members to exchange information related to money laundering, associated predicate offences, and terrorist financing.
This emergency measure will remain in effect while the Egmont Group further assesses the situation in accordance with our internal procedures.
Such events highlight the importance of maintaining a firm position on protecting the security of the information of our members in the ESW. The autonomy and operational independence of FIUs, as well as the principles for data protection and confidentiality, are essential and our collective security and the integrity of information exchange rely on this commitment. The Egmont Group will continue its engagement with FIU Colombia under our current internal procedures so there is confidence among our members that their information is fully protected in compliance with these principles.
Elżbieta Franków-Jaśkiewicz
Chair of the Egmont Group of Financial Intelligence Units
