FATF releases updated asset recovery framework; India played a key role, says Enforcement Directorate

The global inter-governmental Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has released the ‘Asset Recovery Guidance and Best Practices’ guidelines, which provide a comprehensive and updated framework to strengthen the global system for asset recovery against financial crimes.

“The guidance follows up on one of the most significant global reforms to the FATF standards on confiscation and international cooperation in over three decades. It outlines practical measures for policymakers and practitioners to identify, trace, freeze, manage, confiscate, and return assets derived from criminal activity,” the Enforcement Directorate (ED) said on Wednesday (November 5, 2025).

Stating that India has played a prominent role in the development of both the revised FATF standards and the guidance document, the agency said its officials were part of the FATF project teams that drafted the revised recommendations, and participated in the relevant working group and plenary meetings.

“The document contains multiple examples from cases investigated by the ED, which are cited as models of effective asset recovery practice and inter-agency coordination. This recognition reflects the increasing international standing of India and the ED in the global discourse on asset recovery and financial crime enforcement,” it said.

The new framework expands the definition of asset recovery to cover the entire process from the identification of criminal property to its eventual confiscation and return. “For the first time, the FATF has mandated that countries provide for non-conviction-based confiscation, enabling authorities to recover criminal assets even in the absence of a criminal conviction where prosecution is not possible or practical,” the agency said.

The guidance also promotes the adoption of tools such as extended confiscations and unexplained-wealth orders that require individuals to demonstrate the lawful origin of their assets when there is reasonable suspicion of criminal linkage. Greater emphasis has been placed on provisional measures to secure assets at an early stage and prevent their dissipation, including ex parte freezing powers and interim management to preserve value.

The recommendations also call for countries to strengthen mechanisms for rapid and informal cross-border cooperation. “It underlines the importance of transparency, accountability, and victim-centred asset return in maintaining public trust and ensuring that confiscated proceeds are used for legitimate public or victim-related purposes,” the ED said.

The FATF guidance specifically refers to many Indian case examples from the ED, including the case pertaining to the Agri Gold Group, in which the agency and the Andhra Pradesh Crime Investigation Department coordinated to attach assets, resulting in the restoration of ₹6,000 crore to the victims of an investment fraud. Another case related to IREO Group involves the attachment of assets worth ₹1,777 crore, equivalent to the proceeds of crime transferred abroad.

It presents the case of the BitConnect Ponzi scheme, where the ED seized cryptocurrencies worth about ₹1,646 crore. The seized virtual assets were secured in a cold wallet held by the agency, and additional movable and immoveable assets worth ₹489 crore were attached.

Another case is that of Banmeet Singh and others, where India received a mutual legal assistance request from the U.S. in relation to two Indian individuals under investigation for alleged drug trafficking and money laundering. Acting on this request, the ED conducted searches, seizing 268.22 bitcoins valued at about ₹130 crore, and other assets.

“In one instance, the case of the Rose Valley Scheme is highlighted, where they raised public funds through secured debentures and diverted the money into shell companies. The ED provisionally attached assets and coordinated with the Asset Disposal Committee constituted by the High Court to manage restitution. The court authorised release of attached properties worth ₹538 crore to reimburse more than 75,000 investors,” it said.

In the Pen Urban Cooperative Bank case, the accused manipulated accounts and siphoned off deposits through ‘benami’ accounts. The ED attached assets worth ₹290 crore and handed them to the Maharashtra Protection of Interest of Depositors authority for restitution after disposal.

“The guidance also references Indian practices related to coordination among law enforcement, financial intelligence, and tax authorities, the use of corresponding value attachment, and the application of technology and financial data analytics in asset-tracing and interim management. India’s legislative framework under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act and the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act is cited as a comprehensive structure supporting effective asset recovery and management,” the ED said.