The aim of the European Union to intensify the fight with money laundering

Abstract

The article considers some topical issues regarding the phenomenon of money laundering and the ways European Union is fighting with it. More than that, the work is dedicated to highlighting the aims that European Union has set for combating this problem. Preventing from the use of the European Union’s financial system for the purposes of money laundering was always on top priorities for the European Parliament and the Council. Therefore, European Union has been developing its regulatory framework for over thirty years. All these were done in order to protect integrity and stability of internal market, and to protect society from crime. As European market is among the top three biggest economy in the world, the fight against money laundering in the EU level also has a positive global effect. Moreover, the geographical location of Europe was always „attractive” for criminals to launder their illicit gains. Closing this gate for criminals can significantly diminish the volume of laundered illicit gains.