The estimated value of transactions suspected to be tainted and linked to predicate criminal offences and tax evasion last year was $252 million.

This has been highlighted in the Fiji Financial Intelligence Unit Annual Report for 2022 which was tabled in Parliament by Minister for Finance, Professor Biman Prasad.

Director FIU, Razim Buksh, says they are still collecting suspicious transactions and activity reports.

Buksh says this is analysed and further investigated to profile financial transaction, persons and assets.

The intelligence is then disseminated to relevant law enforcement authorities for investigation and prosecution of money laundering and other predicate crimes.

He says in 2022 the FIU disseminated 519 financial intelligence reports to its partner law enforcement agencies that involved profiling and monitoring of 1,597 individuals and 276 entities.

In 2022, the Financial Transactions Reporting Act was amended to revise the cash transaction reporting requirements and introduced a new $5,000 threshold transaction reporting for the commercial banks.

These amendments further strengthens the data collected by the FIU.

Buksh says the FIU will continue to support the Fijian Government through its partner agencies in the fight against financial crimes and other serious criminal activities, and invest in technology by building modern and secure data analysis systems.