The FIU

The Vanuatu Financial Intelligence Unit was enacted in September 2000 and initially governed by the Financial Transaction Reporting Act [CAP 268] until it was replaced by The new Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing (AML&CTF) Act No. 13 of 2014.


It is a unit within the State Law Office located in the Prime Minister's Complex (next to the Reserve Bank of Vanuatu compound) and managed by the Director of the FIU.


It is a specialised Unit created as Vanuatu's national agency responsible for the receipt, analysis, assessment and dissemination of information and intelligences relating to suspected money laundering, terrorist financing and other serious criminal activities to Vanuatu law enforcement agencies as well as international law enforcement agencies.


The Unit is also tasked to regulate compliance and conduct compliance examinations of all financial institutions in Vanuatu as required by the AML&CTF.

 

member FIU staff (2019): Back row (l-r) Mr. Roy Albert SAMUEL (Compliance Officer); Mr. John Hudson MERAH (Enforcement Officer); Ms. Agnes WILLIE (Data Input Officer); Mr. Metson MARKSON (Financial Analyst); Mr. Apollo JACQUES (Compliance Officer); Middle row (l-r) Mrs. Kella BAHA (Compliance Officer); Ms. Denzelle TIGONA (Sanctions Officer); Mr. Mackenzie BANI (Compliance Officer); Ms. Viniana BANI (Compliance Officer); Ms. Lenisha VARI (Financial Analyst); Front row (l-r) Mr. Josiah KUATPEN (Senior Intelligence Officer); Ms. Kirsty TAVOA (Senior Compliance Officer); Mr. Floyd Ray MERA (Director); Mr. Teddy GARAE (Senior Compliance Officer).

Vanuatu FIU's primary functions are intelligence gathering and compliance regulation of financial institutions. The two primary roles are quite distinct but complimentary.

The intelligence function consist of receipt of reports from financial institutions, Government institutions and the public, the analysis and assessment of these reports and the dissemination of intelligence to the law enforcement agencies. The regulatory function consists of the Unit's power to examine and enforce compliance of financial institutions.

To positively contribute to the combating of money laundering, financing of terrorism and other financial/economic crime in Vanuatu as well as in the Pacific and broader region.

To collect, analyse and disseminate financial information and intelligence to support the detection, investigation and prosecution of money laundering, financing of terrorism and financial/economic crimes.

We embrace this mission through compliance examination, information collection, analyse and cooperation in the dissemination of information and supporting domestic and international law enforcement investigations.s