Agencies exchange best practices in cross-border asset recovery during OSCE-supported Balkan Asset Management Interagency Network event

Representatives of twenty-two asset management agencies from across the OSCE area exchanged best practices in cross-border recovery and management of seized and confiscated criminal assets. They met from 20 to 22 September in Chisinau, Moldova for the Annual General Meeting of the Balkan Asset Management Interagency Network (BAMIN), currently presided by the Republic of Moldova.

“Fighting corruption is a priority of the current government. In this context, the Ministry of Justice is undertaking all the necessary actions to ensure that the mechanisms for identifying and confiscating illegally obtained assets contribute to the efficiency of their recovery for the benefit of the state and the citizens of the Republic of Moldova,” said Minister of Justice of the Republic of Moldova Veronica Mihailov-Moraru in her opening remarks.

“This event has international significance. It advances the management of criminal assets, establishes cross-agency co-operation, and allows an exchange of experience and operational data - all indispensable for solving cross-border crimes and repatriating the proceeds of crime,” highlighted Iulian Rusu, Director of the National Anti-corruption Centre.

Jill Thomas, Head of the BAMIN Secretariat, explained that “Locating and seizing criminal assets concealed in various jurisdictions is legally and procedurally challenging. Once the assets are seized, their value should be preserved until the case has been concluded. It is crucial that the authorities involved in international mutual legal assistance share their expertise through BAMIN.”   

BAMIN is an informal network supported by the OSCE Transnational Threats Department and the Office of the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities. Created in 2017 to improve managing, selling, returning, and disposing of confiscated criminal assets in South-Eastern Europe, it has since become a multi-agency platform for expertise exchange. 

It is a part of the “Strengthening Asset Recovery Efforts in the OSCE Region” project, financially supported by Austria, Germany, Italy and the United States.