FIPU or The Algerian Financial Intelligence Processing Unit is a specialized independent body in charge of collecting, processing, analyzing and exchanging intelligence with counterpart organisations - provided reciprocity is applied – in order to contribute to the detection, the prevention and deterrence of fund recycle proceeds of criminality and financing of terrorism.

Organization

Services

THE COUNCIL OF THE FIPU

The Financial Intelligence Processing Unit is headed by a chairman who is himself a member of a council composed of:

The General Secretariat

Under the control of the chairman (secondary organizer) ensures the management of administration, finance and accountancy of the FIPU and supplies the necessary logistics for the proper operation of this latter.

The four services of the Unit

The four services of the FIPU work with 08 chargés d’étude and 5 Financial Analyst-Investigators; all are civil servants who previously worked in various financial administrations (Customs, taxes). The different services are as follows:

Investigation and Analysis Service:

It is in charge of gathering intelligence, relations with correspondents, analysis of STR’s and reports, and carrying out investigations.

Documentation and Data Bases Service

It is in charge of centralizing information and building data bases necessary to run the FIPU. The Judicial Service

The Judicial Service is in charge of relations with the prosecutor’s department and follow up of judicial examination.

Cooperation Service:

It is in charge of bilateral and multilateral relations with foreign authorities and institutions working in the same field of activity.

The areas

Money Laundering

It is considered a money laundering the conversion or the transfer of assets whose author knows that they are derived from crime, in order to hide or disguise the illicit origin of the afore mentioned assets or to help any person involved in the main offence to escape the judicial outcome of his acts after which these assets are recovered; (Article 2, paragraph 1 of law n° 05-01 of February 6, 2005). (Article 2, alinéa 1 de la loi N° 05-01 du 27 Dhou El Hidja 1425 correspondant au 6 Février 2005). That practice consists in concealing the illegal origin of financial funds by reintroducing them in the economic network through financial institutions in order to use them later in a legal manner. Although hardly quantified due to its hidden and insidious character, money laundering throughout the world is estimated by the media who quote the United Nations to several hundreds of billions of dollars per year. The main source of the laundered funds is drug trafficking.

Financing of Terrorism

It is considered an offence of financing of terrorism: any act by any means whatsoever or indirectly, illicitly and deliberately provides or collect funds with intent to make them used wholly or partly for committing offences qualified as terrorist or subversive acts that are stated and punished by article “87 bis to 87 bis 9” of ordinance n°95-11 of February 25th 1995 modifying and completing ordinance n°66-156 of June 8th 19966 regarding the penal code. (Article 3, of law n°05-01 of February 6th 2005. (Article 3, de la loi N° 05-01 du 27 Dhou El Hidja 1425 correspondant au 6 Février 2005).

The fight against crime

HOW TO FIGHT AGAINST CRIMES

established on the basis of operations considered to be suspicious by certain categories of persons and Designated non-Financial Businesses and Professions liable to provide STR’s as defined in article 19 of the law n°05-01. After constituting and analyzing the case, the council of the FIPU decides – depending upon the degree of presumption brought on the case-whether to forward the case to the state prosector. The specialized organ PFIU is in charge of analyzing and processing information provided by empowered authorities and STR’s that should be forwarded by persons and institutions according to Article 15 of the Law n°05-01 of February 2nd 2005. Art.15 de la Loi 05-01 du 06.02.2005 As stated in the previous article of law, the FIPU gathers intelligence through the STR’s Executive Decree n°05-05 of January 9th 2006, ( Décret exécutif n° 06-05 du 9 janvier 2006) established on the basis of operations considered to be suspicious by certain categories of persons and Designated non-Financial Businesses and Professions liable to provide STR’s as defined in article 19 of the law n°05-01. After constituting and analyzing the case, the council of the FIPU decides – depending upon the degree of presumption brought on the case-whether to forward the case to the state prosector.

Procedure declaration

Suspicious Transaction Report

The STR is the document in due form by which the obliged person is required to inform the FIU about the suspicious origin of funds Décrêt n° 06-05 du 09-01-2006 Déclaration Soupçon.

Our Interlocutors

The submitted to the declaration of suspicion are

• -Banks and financial institutions, the financial services of the Algeria post office, the other affiliated financial institutions, insurance companies, currency exchange office, Mutual Insurance Company, bet, games and casinos.
• -All legal or natural persons that advice or achieve operations that include cash deposit, exchange, investment or conversions or any other movement of assets, particularly regulated liberal professions and more particularly the solicitors ,the auctioneers ,the chartered accountants, statutory auditors, the brockers,the customs agents, the stockbrockers,the intermediaries in stock-market transactions, real-estate agents, the companies of fracturing as well as merchants of precious stones and metals, antiquities and work of art. (law N 05-01 of 06 February 2005 pertaining to the prevention and fighting against money laundering and terrorist financing-article 19)