Financial Intelligence Unit—India

Financial Intelligence Unit—India (FIU-IND) is an organisation under the Department of Revenue, Government of India which collects financial intelligence about offences[1] under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002. It was set up in November 2004 and reports directly to the Economic Intelligence Council (EIC) headed by the Finance Minister.[2]

Financial Intelligence Unit—India
वित्तीय आसूचना एकक — भारत
Agency overview
FormedNovember 18, 2004; 19 years ago (2004-11-18)
TypeFinancial Intelligence Unit
JurisdictionGovernment of India
StatusActive
HeadquartersConnaught Place, New Delhi
Employees75
Minister responsible
Agency executive
  • Vivek Aggarwal, IAS, Director
Parent departmentDepartment of Revenue
Websitefiuindia.gov.in

Functions

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The functions of FIU-IND are:[2]

  1. Collection of Information: FIU-IND is the nodal agency for receiving the following reports from various reporting entities.
    1. Cash Transaction reports (CTRs)
    2. Non-Profit Organisation Transaction Reports (NTRs)
    3. Cross Border Wire Transfer Reports (CBWTRs)
    4. Reports on Purchase or Sale of Immovable Property (IPRs)
    5. Suspicious Transaction Reports (STRs)
  2. Analysis of Information: to uncover patterns of transactions suggesting suspicion of money laundering and related crimes.
  3. Sharing of Information: with national intelligence/law enforcement agencies, national regulatory authorities and foreign Financial Intelligence Units.
  4. Act as Central Repository: to maintain the national data base on the basis of reports received from reporting entities.
  5. Coordination: Coordinate and strengthen collection and sharing of financial intelligence through an effective national, regional and global network to combat money laundering and related crimes.
  6. Research and Analysis: Monitor and identify strategic key areas on money laundering trends, typologies and developments.
  7. Punitive Action: The agency can also take punitive action for violations of the PMLA. In December 2020, it imposed a fine of Rs. 96 lakh (9,600,000) on PayPal.[3]

Organisation

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The agency has a sanctioned strength of 75 staff, drawn on deputation from Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC), Reserve Bank of India (RBI), Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), Department of Legal Affairs and Intelligence agencies.[2] It is headed by a Director, in the rank of Joint Secretary. Current Director is Pankaj Kumar Mishra, IRS-IT (1989), appointed in May 2016 for a five year term.[4][5] He was promoted to Additional Secretary in May 2020, as a personal measure, with temporary upgradation of the post.[6][7]

References

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  1. ^ Scheduled Offences under the PMLA, from FIU-IND website
  2. ^ a b c About FIU-IND, from official website  This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  3. ^ India’s Financial Intelligence Unit fines PayPal Rs 96 lakh for ‘violating anti-money laundering law’, The Print, 20 December 2020
  4. ^ Babus rejig: Pankaj Kumar Mishra appointed Financial Intelligence Unit chief, The Economic Times, 30 May 2016
  5. ^ ACC Appointments, Press Information Bureau, 30 May 2016, archived copy
  6. ^ 5 Additional Secretary Appointments, Indian Bureaucracy, 20 May 2020, archived copy
  7. ^ Major bureaucratic reshuffle effected at Secretary, AS & JS level, Indian Mandarins, 12 May 2020, archived copy