Regional externalities and direct effects of legislation against money laundering: a test on excess money balances in the five Andean countries

Describes the research methodology used by EEC team studying anti‐money laundering legislation in the five Andean Pact member states: Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela. Focuses on the cooperation between the EEC Central Research Unit and the Local Research Units in the five countries, and why the 40 Recommendations of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF( were chosen as the benchmark for the investigation. Illustrates the results of the comparative analysis of anti‐money laundering legislation in the five countries. Analyses responses to a questionnaire about the main money laundering channels in each country and whether this relates to inadequate compliance to FATF legislation. Measures the impact of uneven FATF compliance in the Andean countries on their excess money balances.