German Financial Intelligence Unit

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The Central Office for Financial Transaction Investigations (Zentralstelle für Finanztransaktionsuntersuchungen) is the official name of the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) in Germany.[1] It serves as the national central agency responsible for receiving, collecting, and analyzing reports of suspicious financial transactions that may be related to money laundering or the financing of terrorism (cf. § 89c of the German Criminal Code).[2]

The Central Office for Suspicious Activity Reports was established after the September 11, 2001 attacks. Initially, the FIU was set up as a police unit within the Federal Criminal Police Office (Bundeskriminalamt). On June 26, 2017, it was reorganized as a division within Directorate VIII – Customs Investigation Office of the General Directorate of Customs (Generalzolldirektion), transferring its responsibilities to the German customs administration.[3] On May 1, 2021, the FIU was reorganized as its own department—Directorate X—within the General Directorate of Customs.

Since Wirecard AG went bankrupt, the FIU has faced public criticism for how it dealt with suspicious activity reports linked to the company.[4][5]

References

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  1. ^ "§ 27 GwG - Einzelnorm". www.gesetze-im-internet.de. Retrieved 2025-06-28.
  2. ^ "§ 89c StGB - Einzelnorm". www.gesetze-im-internet.de. Retrieved 2025-06-28.
  3. ^ "German Finance, Justice ministries searched in fraud probe – DW – 09/09/2021". dw.com. Retrieved 2025-06-28.
  4. ^ "Wirecard-Untersuchungsausschuss: Operation Schutz für Olaf Scholz". Der Spiegel (in German). 2021-06-08. ISSN 2195-1349. Retrieved 2025-06-28.
  5. ^ "German agency withheld incriminating Wirecard warnings – DW – 08/12/2020". dw.com. Retrieved 2025-06-28.
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