Expert: Serious justification is needed to disclose bank secrecy

ArmInfo. Disclosure of  bank secrecy requires serious justification, Economist, head of the  Alternative research center, Doctor of Economics, Professor Tatul  Manaseryan, expressed this opinion on September 23 at a press  conference. "I believe that the disclosure of bank secrets is  acceptable in cases where other options for resolving the issue are  no longer possible," the expert emphasized.

At the same time, he drew attention to the fact that today Armenia  has no alternative in the fight against corruption schemes that have  been developed for decades and provide for safety net at each stage.  ''Our alternative is to come to terms with existing reality. Just do  not naively believe that the process of theft and corruption in  Armenia has ended. Moreover, I believe that new cases will be  revealed, I do not exclude that they are connected with persons who  enjoy confidence today and represent the new government'', Manaseryan  said.

Stressing the importance of the law, the economist noted that it is  necessary to try to maintain a balance between public interests, an  effective fight against economic crimes and corruption and bank  secrecy. "This is a complex process that can be carried out by joint  efforts, in particular with the involvement of experts of narrow  specialization and without the participation of the media," he said.

At the same time, the economist referred to his conclusions on the  fight against corruption as part of a study of international  experience. In this vein, Manaseryan emphasized: "No country would be  able to enter the top ten or twenty of the list of countries fighting  corruption if there wasn't such an opportunity to open bank accounts  that constitute serious evidence or are in doubt".

To recall, on September 12, the Armenian government approved  amendments and additions to the laws on "Criminal Procedure" and "On  Bank Secrecy", which provide for the disclosure of banking  information.  Under current law, investigators and prosecutors can  receive bank account information only with respect to suspects and  accused. At the same time, accounts of related parties are not  subject to verification. As First Deputy Minister of Justice Rafik  Grigoryan stated the current legislation impedes the investigation of  cases related to corruption risks, since corruption investigations  can often be related not only to these individuals, but also to  people who are related to them, and in some cases, evidence that is  necessary to attract person as an accused is inaccessible to the  investigation due to bank secrecy.

The proposed amendments are intended to remove restrictions, but at  the same time provide for specific mechanisms of guarantees and  restrictions. In particular, a full list of crimes will be  established for which a petition for disclosing bank secrets can be  submitted, as well as the prosecutor's control over the submission of  the petition is ensured. In addition, the court must present a  reasoned decision on the application, assess whether this is the only  aspect and whether it is impossible to find out in other ways, as  well as the possibility of notifying the person of the decision made  and the possibility of challenging it.

As many experts said, the bill on the abolition of bank secrecy poses  many threats to the banking system and is fraught with an outflow of  capital from banking institutions of Armenia.

As the press service of the Central Bank of Armenia told ArmInfo on  September 13, both under the current law and after the proposed  changes come into force, data containing bank secrets will be  provided only by court order. "The institution of banking secrecy has  been and remains one of the pillars of financial stability, and the  planned regulation compared to the current one is not considered a  mitigation. The Central Bank is firm in maintaining the institution  of bank secrecy and in ensuring financial stability in the country,"  the CBA said.