Andorra, the country with the lowest risk of money laundering

Andorra is the country with the lowest risk of money laundering in the world, according to the annual report published by the Basel Institute of Governance, an independent non-profit organisation. The report measures the risk of money laundering and terrorist financing in jurisdictions around the world and, in this edition, the Principality of Andorra has ranked number 1 of the 110 countries analysed. Andorra ranks the highest followed by Finland, Cook Island, Slovenia and Norway; while the worst ranked are Mauritania, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Haiti.

How is the risk of money laundering of a country measured?

The risk scores cover 17 indicators in five domains that are considered relevant to increase the risk of money laundering and terrorism financing. To elaborate this report, the Basel Institute on Governance analyses the Quality of AML Frameworks, the risk and rates of Bribery and Corruption, compliance with Financial Transparency and Standards, Public Transparency and Accountability and the Legal and Political Risks.

Andorra achieves excellence in the fight against money laundering

The report recognizes that Andorra has made progress in terms of technical cooperation deficiencies and has been re-evaluated on several occasions by international organizations. In fact, the Principality of Andorra ceased to be a tax haven by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in 2018. Since then, the country has developed the most comprehensive system on the planet when it comes to preventing money laundering.

The aforementioned report not only considers the legislation to avoid money laundering, but also analyses the degree of efficiency in the application of these regulations. There are a great number of countries with many protocols that don’t rank as high as Andorra because they don’t have a good level of compliance with the standards. In this regard, Andorra achieves excellence in the fight against money laundering.

The report also highlights that most jurisdictions that have been evaluated or re-evaluated during the last year have achieved worse scores and therefore urges governments to invest more resources, not only in the prevention of money laundering and the financing of terrorism, but also in the resources to ensure compliance.

Andorra, a safe, modern and internationally recognized country

This report is further proof that Andorra is one of the best locations for investments and business developments. It is a safe, modern and internationally recognized country that benefits from a unique and stable political framework and has great advantages for both national and international investors.