Global Financial Integrity’s report says Moldova lost 252 million dollars via illicit financial flows

About 525 million dollars got out from Moldova to foreign banks or fiscal paradises from 2001 through 2010. The data is provided by the Global Financial Integrity’s (GFI) report, which monitors the illicit financial outflows.

The study’s authors specify that the estimations are conservative and do not reflect the maximum values. The maximum annual average would be of 345 million dollars.

The report on illicit money outflows, issued by the GFI’s American analysis group, reveals that about 2.51 billion dollars have been taken out from Moldova in the period 2001-2010. These outflows reached a record high in 2008 and 2010. In 2008, the illicit money outflow amounted to 507 million dollars and to 498 million dollars in 2010.

Moldova ranks 93rd among those 143 countries of the top compiled by Global Financial Integrity. The size of financial outflows from Moldova is much smaller then from other states with stronger economies and higher financial turnover. Ukraine annually looses 460 million dollars via the illicit outflows, Romania – 884 million dollars and Russia – 15.1 billion dollars.

Some local experts described as exaggerated the estimations of the illicit financial flows for Moldova, while others said that they might be even higher. They added that one of the channels of currency outflows is the non-repatriation of currency from exports, overestimation of prices for imports, underestimation of export and the untaxed money transfers from abroad. Some economists say that «it is not a secret for anyone that businessmen, including Moldovan ones, largely practice capital outflow schemes, which, subsequently, return to the state of origin from «the fiscal paradise» as foreign investments».

Adapted from Moldpres