OSCE strengthens Armenia’s capacities to investigate crypto-related financial crime

The Office of the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities (OCEEA) organized a two-day workshop on Crypto-Asset Investigations and International Standards on 14 and 15 October in Yerevan, Armenia, bringing together representatives of the Central Bank of Armenia, its Financial Monitoring Center, the Investigative Committee and the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

The workshop aimed to strengthen the capacities of Armenian authorities to detect, trace and investigate illicit financial activities involving virtual assets, while promoting effective inter-agency co-operation and compliance with international anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) standards. It combined expert presentations, interactive discussions and practical case studies covering blockchain investigations, emerging money laundering and terrorist financing risks, cryptocurrency-related fraud and investment scams, and techniques for tracing illicit financial flows across multiple wallets, blockchain networks and virtual asset service providers (VASPs).

Through hands-on exercises, participants explored practical investigative techniques, including wallet attribution, transaction tracing, blockchain analytics and the use of open-source intelligence. Particular attention was devoted to identifying suspicious transaction patterns, understanding the limitations of blockchain analytics tools and strengthening the ability of competent authorities to trace the movement of illicit funds.

The training also highlighted the importance of effective co-operation between financial intelligence units, law enforcement agencies, regulators, banks and virtual asset service providers. Discussions examined mechanisms for information sharing, suspicious transaction reporting, public-private partnerships and approaches to strengthening financial institutions’ compliance and risk management frameworks.

The workshop further addressed emerging challenges associated with the rapidly evolving virtual asset ecosystem, including the use of cryptocurrencies in fraud and other criminal activities, as well as challenges related to asset tracing, freezing and recovery.

“As criminal networks increasingly exploit virtual assets to move illicit funds across borders, our response must be equally sophisticated and co-ordinated. Technology alone is not enough. Effective investigations require skilled professionals, strong institutions and trusted partnerships. Through this workshop, the OSCE is helping Armenia strengthen these essential capacities and stay ahead of emerging financial crime risks,” stressed Vera Strobachova-Budway, Senior Economic Officer, in her address to the workshop participants.

The workshop was organized under the OSCE extra-budgetary project “Innovative Policy Solutions to Mitigate Money-Laundering Risks of Virtual Assets”, with financial support from the Government of the United Kingdom through UK International Development.