- Increasing Suspicions of Money Laundering
The number of suspicious cases of money laundering reported by Berlin's notaries has been increasing for years. As of July this year, there have been 362 such cases, most of which were flagged during real estate purchases due to suspicions that the money may have originated from criminal activities. This was the response from the Senate to an inquiry by the SPD. Last year, there were 478 cases, followed by 431 and 425.
Under the Anti-Money Laundering Act, notaries must file reports with the Central Office for Financial Transactions Investigations (FIU) for real estate transactions and other transactions. Since 2020, these regulations have made the reporting process significantly simpler. Before 2020, there were virtually no suspicious cases reported by notaries in Berlin.
The Berlin Chamber of Notaries explains that Germany is one of the most legally secure countries in the world and "at the same time, also one of the most sought-after destinations for illegally acquired funds (e.g. from drug trafficking, prostitution, or tax evasion). The consequence of German rule of law is that money laundering from criminal activities is easy."
After the simplification of reporting processes under the Anti-Money Laundering Act in 2020, more cases of money laundering with a suspicion of illegal origins began to be reported by notaries in Berlin. This shift in reporting coincides with the overall increase in suspicious cases over the past few years.
