FINANCIAL INVESTIGATIONS AS A FIRST STEP TO RECOVER SANCTIONED ASSETS

Is it possible to confiscate sanctioned assets and use them for public good? How to do this quickly and without compromising the rule of law? These are some of the questions that CiFAR has been trying to understand since the freezing of Tunisian, Egyptian and Ukrainian assets under the EU’s misappropriation sanctions. These questions became Read more about <strong>FINANCIAL INVESTIGATIONS AS A FIRST STEP TO RECOVER SANCTIONED ASSETS</strong>[…]

Anti-corruption sanctions: 2022 in numbers

While sanctions lists have grown this year primarily due to new listings in connection to individuals linked to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, anti-corruption sanctions have not been forgotten. As CiFAR launches its updated Sanctions Watch platform today, which tracks individuals sanctioned for reasons related to corruption, this blog takes stock of this year’s changes in Read more about Anti-corruption sanctions: 2022 in numbers[…]

WEBINAR: Enforcing sanctions successfully and using fines for the public good.

Online event: 25 January 2023, 16:00 – 17:15 CET Event link Background The successful enforcement of sanctions relies on the action and compliance of a range of actors across cooperating jurisdictions, from financial institutions to the business sector. Several jurisdictions have, or are thinking of introducing, legislative or policy tools to ensure and respond to Read more about WEBINAR: Enforcing sanctions successfully and using fines for the public good.[…]

WEBINAR: Opportunities for the confiscation of sanctioned assets.

Online event: 3 November 2022, 16:00 – 17:15 CET Event link Link to the webinar recording Background Sanctions imposed on Russian individuals in the aftermath of the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 once again highlighted the issue of the vast amount of assets of illicit origin that are hidden across Western jurisdictions.       One Read more about WEBINAR: Opportunities for the confiscation of sanctioned assets.[…]

EU MISAPPROPRIATION SANCTIONS TEN YEARS ON – FACTSHEET 2021

BACKGROUND Following the revolutions in 2011 in Tunisia and Egypt and 2014 in Ukraine, the Council of the European Union imposed misappropriation sanctions on people suspected of corruption from the ousted regimes. These require that any assets relating to people on the list, including real estate and bank accounts, are frozen in all EU Member Read more about EU MISAPPROPRIATION SANCTIONS TEN YEARS ON – FACTSHEET 2021[…]

The European Court of Justice annuls Ukrainian sanctions – what now?

The European Court of Justice in its decision of the 11 July 2019 annulled the 2014-2018 EU sanctions that had been in force to freeze the assets of several high-ranking former Ukrainian officials since 2013, including those of former president Yanukovych. These asset freezes had been put in place after the Ukrainian revolution to support Read more about The European Court of Justice annuls Ukrainian sanctions – what now?[…]

Freeze, confiscate, restore? Swiss ideas for future EU sanctions

This article is drawn from Clara Portela’s report for CiFAR – Sanctioning kleptocrats: An assessment of EU misappropriation sanctions written for CiFAR’s EU Sanctions Watch project. The blog was initially written for the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) and can be read in full on their website.  Sanctions for ‘misappropriation’ have proved their worth in forging ties Read more about Freeze, confiscate, restore? Swiss ideas for future EU sanctions[…]

What are the EU misappropriation sanctions and what are we doing about them?

With the help of their corrupt networks, kleptocrats steal billions from their citizens every year. One of the tools the European Union has at its disposal to fight kleptocrats are sanctions that freeze their assets. On 6th of March, at a Brussels event co-organised by our partners at Transparency International EU, CiFAR launched EU Sanctions Watch – Read more about What are the EU misappropriation sanctions and what are we doing about them?[…]

The role of civil society in asset recovery and fighting corruption in Ukraine

This blog is a part of our Ukraine series – written and researched by Michael Howard. You can read the previous post here.  On 4 November, media reported the passing of 33-year-old anti-corruption activist Kateryna Handzyuk, who three months earlier had been horrifically injured in an acid attack in the city of Kherson in southern Ukraine. Read more about The role of civil society in asset recovery and fighting corruption in Ukraine[…]

The NeverEnding Story: the Yanukovych asset recovery

This blog is a part of our Ukraine series – written and researched by Michael Howard. The day Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych fled to Russia in 2014 the entire Ukrainian treasury had a few thousand dollars. During 4 years in power, he and his cronies allegedly looted billions from the country (some say as much as Read more about The NeverEnding Story: the Yanukovych asset recovery[…]