The majority of these reports, almost 94 percent, were received from financial institutions, electronic money institutions and other payment institutions, the agency said.
Compared to the same period last year, virtual currency exchange operators reported 70 times more suspicious monetary operations or transactions this year. After the FCIS system used to automatically assessed the risk level of the reports, FCIS officers carried out additional analysis on half of them, the FCIS said.
"Currently, 788 virtual currency exchange operators operate in Lithuania, and the rapid growth in their number in Lithuania has led to a significant increase in the number of received reports on suspicious transactions. FCIS officers are carefully assessing the information provided by companies in this sector, and as many as half of the reports submitted have been subject to additional analysis," Rolandas Kiskis, the FCIS director, said, adding that the agency will pay more attention to this sector.
The number of reports received from commercial banks or their branches also increased almost 1.8 times in the nine months. Other entities, like specialized banks, car dealers, unions, notaries, required by law to report suspicious transactions, also made almost 2.3 times more reports during the period.
The number of reports received from foreign financial intelligence units also rose slightly.
The FCIS also reported an increase in the number of reports on funds suspended in accounts by 2.3 times during the reporting period. This year, the amount of suspended funds reached more than 131 million euros, up four times from the same period last year.
Under the existing law, if financial institutions and other entities discover that their customers are carrying out suspicious monetary operations or transactions, they must suspend them, regardless of the amount involved.
Exceptions only apply when it’s objectively impossible to do so due to the nature of the transaction, the manner in which it is carried out or other circumstances. The FCIS offices must report a suspicious transaction within three hours of its suspension.