Within the framework of the project “Countering Economic Crime in Serbia”, a two-day training on the investigation of virtual assets in money laundering and terrorist financing cases was held in Belgrade, strengthening the capacities of prosecution, judiciary and law enforcement to detect, investigate and adjudicate money laundering, terrorist financing and corruption cases involving these assets.

Twenty representatives of the prosecution, the judiciary, the police, the Administration for the Prevention of Money Laundering and the Agency for Prevention of Corruption explored Bitcoin fundamentals, transactions and blockchain analysis through interactive discussions and practical exercises. Participants practised tracing funds across multiple transactions, identifying links between digital addresses (wallets) and the individuals or service providers controlling them, and differentiating between payments and transactions that consolidate funds. Particular focus was placed on the quality, reliability and evidentiary value of forensic reports generated by crypto asset analytics tools.

The discussions also encompassed the limitations of blockchain analysis, the need to support findings of blockchain analysis with other evidence, the role of virtual asset service providers in investigations and ways to document results clearly for criminal proceedings.

The activity took place under the project “Countering Economic Crime in Serbia”, funded by Sweden, represented by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, and implemented by the Council of Europe.