The Paris Region Applies to Welcome the Future European Anti-Money Laundering Authority

The Paris Region Applies to Welcome the Future AMLA

The Paris Region Applies to Welcome the Future European Anti-Money Laundering Authority

The European Anti-Money Laundering Authority (AMLA) in Paris

 

Money laundering and financing of terrorism is a serious threat to the integrity of the European Union’s economy and financial system and to the security of its citizens.

In July 2021, the European Commission published a draft for a European regulation aiming to create a new European authority, the Authority for Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AMLA). The AMLA will be responsible for fighting money laundering and the financing of terrorism. It will have supervisory and sanctioning powers and will ensure a harmonised implementation of the regulations applicable in this area.

On December 6th, 2022, Paris officially announced its bid to host this new European authority and its staff.

An operational task force was created to support this bid. The team is led by Robert Ophèle who is a former Deputy Governor of the Banque de France, Chairman of the French Prudential Supervision and Resolution Authority, and Chairman of the Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF).

Tasked by Elisabeth Borne with the Paris Region bid, Robert Ophèle leads the operational task force with the support, among others, of the French Treasury and Choose Paris Region, the regional agency for attractiveness and a one-stop shop for international investments in the Paris Region.

On March 28, the European Parliament voted on a negotiating mandate for three projects related to the fight against money laundering and terrorist financing, including the regulation establishing the European Anti-Money Laundering Authority (AMLA). Compared to the Commission's regulation, MEPs wanted to strengthen the powers of the AMLA to coordinate cooperation and exchange of information between financial intelligence units. It will also serve as a new focal point for monitoring and enforcing sanctions in the Member States and will directly supervise high-risk financial companies operating in the Member States.

Choose Paris Region will be ready and available to support the future Authority's employees and their families as they settle in the Paris Region.

Media resources

 

I am determined to provide the best conditions for the establishment of the AMLA in the Paris region, as we have done with the European Banking Authority. This will strengthen European leadership in the fight against money laundering and financing of terrorism. Our region offers an ideal setting for AMLA, with high quality infrastructures, a pool of talent, a world-class educational, social and medical offer and a connectivity unmatched in Europe. The Region ranks first in Europe for the effectiveness of its policies against money laundering and terrorist financing*. Choose Paris Region will be able to centralise and facilitate all the steps involved in setting up a business, and dedicated advisors will accompany the AMLA at every stage. As President of the Île-de-France region, I am enthusiastic about our bid to host the AMLA and I am committed to doing everything possible to ensure that its creation in the Paris region takes place under the best possible conditions.

President of the Regional Council of Île-de-France

Welcoming the AMLA

The Paris Region Assets

Paris and its region offer many advantages favorable to the installation of the authority:

  • An important and innovative financial ecosystem:
    • Presence of the European Banking Agency (EBA) and the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) in the area
    • An international system dedicated to the fight against money laundering and the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) which benefits from an excellent rating by the FATF
    • A major digital hub for quantum, AI, and cybersecurity
  • A dense and diverse network of International Organizations, supported and driven by local and national authorities
  • Numerous high-quality air and rail links to and from European and international capitals
  • The most extensive public transit network in the world, which is still being expanded to improve the flow of users in the region
  • Ambitious objectives for the energy transition with an energy mix offering low-carbon energy
  • A large real estate offer that can meet all the needs expressed
  • An international employment pool allowing spouses to find employment
  • An exceptional educational offer thanks to international schools, an incomparable cultural and entertainment offer.
The Best Destination for AMLA Selecting the Future AMLA Site

About the Operational Task Force

Portrait of Robert Ophèle

Ministry of the Economy, Finance, and Industrial and Digital Sovereignty

The Ministry of the Economy, Finance, and Industrial and Digital Sovereignty prepares and implements the Government's economic, financial, budgetary, and fiscal policies. As a sovereign ministry, it has a very broad scope of competence, making it an essential part of the functioning of the State and the country's economic life.

Robert Ophèle

Head of the task force in charge of the French bid to host the AMLA in Paris.

Portrait of Lionel Grotto

Choose Paris Region

Choose Paris Region will be supporting the creation of this new European authority in the Paris Region by offering the benefit of its experience in assisting nearly 2,000 foreign investments every year. Notably, the Agency successfully supported the relocation of the European Banking Authority from London to Paris in 2019. It is currently co-running with the Greater Paris Investment Agency a network of international organizations based in the Paris Region to help create favorable conditions for their development.

Lionel Grotto

CEO of Choose Paris Region.

Media Resources

 

Replay

Public Hearing for Hosting the Seat of the Anti-Money Laundering Authority (AMLA), Jan. 30, 2024

The delegation included Alexandra Dublanche (President of Choose Paris Region), Bruno Le Maire (French Minister of the Economy and Finance), Bertrand Dumont (Director General of the French Treasury), Robert Ophèle (former Chairman of the Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF) and head of the bid project, Guillaume Valette Valla (Director of Tracfin), and Lionel Grotto (CEO of Choose Paris Region) to highlight our strengths to representatives of the European Parliament and the Council.

The Paris Region bid starts approximately at the 19:00 mark. 

Watch the Replay

Replay (in French)

Press Conference, November 17, 2023

Watch the replay of the press conference held on November 17, 2023 to announce Paris' bid for the AMLA, in the presence of Bruno Le Maire, Minister of the Economy, Finance and Industrial and Digital Sovereignty, Laurence Boone, Secretary of State for Europe, and Alexandra Dublanche, Vice-President of the Paris Region and President of Choose Paris Region.

Watch the Replay

Communication leaflets

The European Anti-Money Laundering Authority (AMLA) in the Paris Region

Money laundering and financing of terrorism is a serious threat to the integrity of the European Union’s economy and financial system and to the security of its citizens.

2022 Edition 2023 Edition
Press releases (in French)

The Paris Region Applies to Host the Future AMLA

December 6, 2022 - Bruno Le Maire, French Minister of the Economy, Finance and Industrial and Digital Sovereignty, is pleased to present, on behalf of the President of the Republic and the Prime Minister, the Paris Region's bid to host the future European Anti-Money Laundering Authority (AMLA).

November 17, 2023 - Bruno Le Maire, French Minister of the Economy, Finance and Industrial and Digital Sovereignty, and Laurence Boone, Secretary of State for Europe, on behalf of the French President and Prime Minister, presented Paris' bid to host the future European Anti-Money Laundering Authority (AMLA), in the presence of Alexandra Dublanche, Vice-President of the Paris Region and President of Choose Paris Region.

Dec. 6, 2022 Press Release Nov. 17, 2023 Press Release
Presentation (in French)

Task Force Visit to Brussels and Presentation of the Paris Region Assets

On March 27, 2023, H.E. Philippe LEGLISE-COSTA and Delphine DUTHILLEUL welcomed to the Permanent Representation of France to the European Union: Robert OPHELE, Head of the Task Force, Pierre ALLEGRET, Head of the French Delegation to the FATF and of the fight against financial crime, and Lionel GROTTO, CEO of Choose Paris Region.

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