The Council of Europe organised a two-day workshop in Belgrade to support Serbia’s Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), the Administration for the Prevention of Money Laundering (APML), in finalising its procedures for operational and strategic analysis. The workshop built on earlier technical assistance aimed at strengthening the FIU’s analytical processes, in line with the findings and recommendations of the sixth-round MONEYVAL mutual evaluation of Serbia.
The first part of the workshop focused on operational analysis, including the prioritisation of suspicious transaction reports, preparation of financial intelligence reports and criteria for sharing information with competent authorities. The APML representatives demonstrated their existing IT systems and analytical tools, while Council of Europe experts guided participants through practical tasks and case-based exercises to refine the procedures and adapt them to their daily work.
The second part addressed strategic analysis, which will help the FIU identify broader money laundering and terrorist financing trends, patterns and emerging risks. Participants worked with the experts on the main stages of strategic analysis, from prioritisation and planning to information collection, evaluation and reporting. Using practical examples from APML’s analytical work, they explored how findings from individual cases can inform wider risk assessments, improve the identification of suspicious activities and support more targeted prevention and supervision. Discussions also highlighted the importance of data quality, critical thinking and co-operation between operational and strategic analysts.
As a result of the technical assistance and the workshop, the procedures for operational and strategic analysis were finalised and adopted by the APML. This represents an important step towards more consistent and effective analytical practices, enabling the FIU to produce higher-quality financial intelligence and share it with the relevant authorities to support the prevention and investigation of money laundering and terrorist financing.
The activity took place within 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.