The National Police Strengthens Collaboration with Public-Private Entities in the Fight Against Terrorism Financing and Radicalism

Second Edition of the Conference “Public-Private Collaboration in the Fight Against Terrorism Financing and Radicalism”

The conference, held in Madrid this morning, featured presentations from various experts in the prevention and fight against terrorism financing and radicalism

The event, attended by 200 specialists in the field of terrorism financing prevention, was organized by the General Information Commissioner’s Office, as part of its commitment to research and neutralize serious threats to National Security

This edition was supported by the Executive Service of the Commission for the Prevention of Money Laundering and Monetary Offenses (SEPBLAC), the associations AEB, ASNEF, CECA, UNACC, and the company Mastercard

The National Police has organized in Madrid the second edition of the conference “Public-Private Collaboration in the Fight Against Terrorism Financing and Radicalism.” The meeting brought together numerous specialists in the field of prevention, detection, and combat against terrorist financing. The day, organized by the General Information Commissioner’s Office, was supported by the Executive Service of the Commission for the Prevention of Money Laundering and Monetary Offenses (SEPBLAC), Spanish Banking Association (AEB), National Association of Financial Credit Establishments (ASNEF), Association of Savings Banks and Banks Created by Them (CECA), National Union of Credit Cooperatives (UNACC), and Mastercard.

Strengthening Bonds Between the National Police and Private Entities

In this second edition, there was a deepening of collaboration between the National Police and obligated entities in the prevention and detection of terrorism financing and illicit radicalism for the effective conclusion of police investigations. For this purpose, various round table discussions addressed topics such as “Terrorism Financing Prevention from SEPBLAC,” “Fighting Against Terrorism Financing from the Police Perspective,” “The Use of Artificial Intelligence in Money Laundering Prevention,” and “Radicalisms, Macro-Disruptive Phenomena, and Counter-Proliferation.” At the national level, there are various working groups aimed at establishing and strengthening bonds with obligated entities in the prevention and detection of terrorism financing and radicalism.

The day began with a first round table where, in general terms, the importance of public-private collaboration in this fight was highlighted, featuring comments from Manuel Rodríguez, Head of Operations of the General Information Commissioner’s Office, who stated: “Economic investigation is an essential element in the fight against terrorism and radicalism, not only directed at clarifying financing crimes but also at the related criminal types involved with the activities of organizations. Collaboration from the private sector is indispensable for both preventive activities and for neutralizing the terrorist threat.”

For his part, the director of SEPBLAC, Pedro Comín, emphasized: “In this new conference, we have seen how terrorism financing continues to be a relevant threat in a globalized world that exploits technological innovation to transform society to its benefit. Thus, public-private collaboration, of which this conference is a good example, is fundamental so that, with the help of financial entities and other obligated subjects, we can anticipate and prevent this scourge.”

The Prevention of Terrorism Financing

Analysts from the Financial Intelligence Unit of Spain (SEPBLAC) shared their experiences in prevention while preparing their financial intelligence reports with information provided by the obligated entities. This topic was moderated by María Peco from the Spanish Banking Association (AEB), who noted: “Public-private collaboration, in which financial entities are fully committed, is essential to prevent and combat terrorism financing. In today’s interconnected world, marked by the immediacy of transactions, knowledge of holdings observed by authorities is vital to ensure effective preventive measures.”

During the conference, those responsible for investigating terrorism financing presented new modalities discovered during investigations and shared real cases of successfully concluded investigations in a space moderated by Raquel Cabeza Pérez, Corporate Director of Risks and Compliance at CECA, who emphasized: “The private sector is firmly committed to the fight against terrorism financing, and the information provided by authorities about real cases and warning signs enhances the effectiveness of prevention systems implemented by entities.”

Use of Artificial Intelligence in the Prevention of Terrorism Financing

Alberto López González, Vice President of Product Management of Cybersecurity Innovation at Mastercard, a sponsoring company of the event, highlighted during his speech: “Money laundering has evolved over the years, moving from being massively used in cash and bank transfers to quickly penetrating any existing payment method, such as cards or cryptocurrencies. To detect and stop these transactions, Mastercard has been working for years with cutting-edge Artificial Intelligence technology to identify all transactions suspected of being involved in money laundering that pass through our network. Our algorithms can identify them among the billions of transactions that cross our network annually. Thanks to the acquired knowledge, we are also offering this technology for instant payments, where we have been able to identify and prevent up to 120 million euros in fraud and scams. Instant payments expose one to immediate fraud, making the use of AI essential to avoid it.”

Finally, various specialists from the General Information Commissioner’s Office addressed the topic of illicit radicalisms, macro-disruptive phenomena, and counter-proliferation, moderated by Juan José Matías González, Head of Fraud Prevention and Money Laundering at ASNEF, who remarked: “Such events are crucial for the financial sector to acquire the necessary knowledge in order to achieve greater effectiveness in combating the social scourge represented by crimes related to money laundering and terrorism financing and, in turn, to understand the important work carried out by the Security Forces of the State in public safety.”

The representative of UNACC, Cristina Freijanes, stated: “During today’s meeting, the importance of public-private collaboration to combat the major threat that terrorism financing poses to our society was highlighted. Sharing experiences between public institutions and financial entities and keeping updated on the latest developments is essential to be effective in this task that involves us all.”