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Switzerland has so far returned over $2 billion in misappropriated funds to their countries of origin. <\/p>\n
Keystone \/ Martin Ruetschi <\/p>\n
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The tough task of stopping illicit financial flows and returning stolen assets is being complicated by slow progress and waning US leadership.\n<\/p>\n
This content was published on <\/p>\n
September 11, 2025 – 09:00\n<\/p>\n
\n Geraldine Wong Sak Hoi <\/p>\n
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\n Reporter specialised in Swiss foreign affairs, with a side hustle as a sub-editor in the English Department.
\nPreviously my focus was on disinformation and fact-checks, which I still produce occasionally. <\/p>\n
When public officials steal millions from state coffers, it\u2019s ordinary people who suffer.<\/p>\n
In Nigeria, for example, patients seeking treatment at understaffed hospitals fail to receive proper care, said David Ugolor, executive director of the Africa Network for Environment and Economic Justice (ANEEJ). The lack of money to repair classrooms means fewer children in school, while roads that go unrepaired increase the risk of traffic accidents.<\/p>\n
The problem in Nigeria, Ugolor said, \u201chas gone beyond corruption \u2013 it\u2019s state capture\u201d. That means corrupt elites not only steal money but twist the law to maintain control. \u201cAnd it\u2019s deepening inequality and poverty in the country,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Each year, Africa loses almost $90 billion (CHF72 billion) as corrupt officials and criminals send their ill-gotten gains out of the continent, the United NationsExternal link<\/a> estimates. As a result, state investment in healthcare may be cut by half in affected countries and education by a quarter.<\/p>\n Some European and North American nations, amid a rash of scandals<\/a> at their own banks, have targeted accounts held by foreign kleptocrats. Switzerland has so far returned over $2 billion in misappropriated funds, while the European Union adopted a new directiveExternal link<\/a> in 2024 setting out rules for recovering illicit assets in its 27 member states.<\/p>\n Answering readers\u2019 questions about Swiss diplomacy <\/p>\n This article is in response to a question from a Swissinfo reader who asked if it is true that foreign leaders, such as those in Africa, have hidden money in Swiss banks. If you have a question about Swiss trade or diplomacy that you\u2019d like us to answer, get in touch by leaving a comment<\/a>.<\/p>\n It\u2019s a drop in the ocean. \u201cWe\u2019re still seeing a lot more money being taken out of [developing countries] and moved into private hands than is being returned,\u201d said Jackson Oldfield, director of the Germany-based Civil Forum for Asset Recovery (CiFAR).<\/p>\n Yet even as advocates call for a stronger and faster response, some fear that Western nations may no longer prioritise the fight against kleptocracy. Those concerns are only compounded as the United States, previously a driving force, withdraws from its global commitments.<\/p>\n Sending \u2018the wrong signal\u2019<\/p>\n The fight against illicit finance in the US received a blow after a dedicated Kleptocracy Asset Recovery Initiative at the Department of Justice was disbandedExternal link<\/a> in the early days of President Donald Trump\u2019s second term.<\/p>\n The administration has also pausedExternal link<\/a> enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and skipped meetings of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Working Group on Bribery.<\/p>\n \u201cIt has sent the wrong signal and is actually incentivising African governments that are corrupt,\u201d said Ugolor at ANEEJ. \u201cThis is really unfortunate, particularly when we reflect back on the struggle to get this issue on the global agenda.\u201d<\/p>\n Achievements have been hard won, from the inclusion of restitution as a key part of the 2004 UN Convention on Corruption, to the US and Britain hosting the Global Forum on Asset Recovery in 2017, where principlesExternal link<\/a> were adopted for transferring stolen resources.<\/p>\n From pioneer to subject of criticism<\/p>\n Over the past decade, Switzerland has also played a leading role, the country\u2019s foreign ministry told Swissinfo, such as fostering international exchanges of information on cases. The country remains \u201cstrongly committed\u201d to asset recovery, the ministry added, and \u201cis taking measures to combat corruption\u201d both domestically and internationally. <\/p>\n The crooked billions it has handed back are the result of decades of gradual work to shed its image as a centre for illicit finance. Switzerland tightened money-laundering legislation after becoming the first country, in 1986, to pre-emptively freeze the bank accounts of a corrupt leader: Ferdinand Marcos of the Philippines. By 2016, it had introduced a lawExternal link<\/a> on returning foreign illicit assets.<\/p>\n A high point was the 2018 transfer to Nigeria of $321 million, part of the money<\/a> stolen by former dictator Sani Abacha, who ruled in the 1990s, and his family. It marked the first time civic groups helped decide on and supervise where the cash went. Over 200 NGOs, led by ANEEJ, oversaw transfers to people living in poverty.<\/p>\n \u201cThat was a success because for the first time money came to Nigeria that we could trace to beneficiaries in different parts of the country,\u201d said Ugolor. \u201cThe process went smoothly, and it has increasingly become the standard.\u201d<\/p>\n The same approach is being used to restitute some $313 million to Uzbekistan. Part of that is funding the renovation of maternity unitsExternal link<\/a>.<\/p>\n Still, the Swiss record on asset recovery \u2013 identifying, freezing, confiscating and returning stolen money \u2013 isn\u2019t blemish-free. An earlier tranche of the Abacha funds saw much of the $700 million transferred reportedly disappear. A 2022 federal auditExternal link<\/a> found weaknesses in the Swiss system. The 2016 law, the audit office said, is too limited and therefore difficult to use in practice.<\/p>\n Progress can also be slow. Swiss officials sometimes<\/a> promise quick results when cases take years or decades to resolve. A total of CHF683 million in Marcos funds were returned to the Philippines after 60 court rulings over 18 years, though Bern has since updated legislation to speed up the process. Still, more recently, it took the Federal Court two years to rule on an appeal against a cantonal court decision to restitute CHF8 million to Peru in the case of the country\u2019s former intelligence chief, Vladimiro Montesinos. This is \u201ctoo long and unacceptable\u201d, Oscar Sol\u00f3rzano from the Basel Institute on Governance toldExternal link<\/a> Swiss investigative newsletter Gotham City.<\/p>\n \n More<\/p>\n More <\/p>\n Dictators\u2019 funds in Switzerland \u2013 the biggest scandals <\/p>\n This content was published on <\/p>\n Jun 2, 2022 <\/p>\n From Marcos to Yanukovych via Mubarak, a rogues\u2019 gallery of former leaders who have stashed their stolen cash in Switzerland. <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Read more: Dictators\u2019 funds in Switzerland \u2013 the biggest scandals The audit office has also pointed to a lack of transparency, with no single register of cases. The Financial Action Task Force (FATF), an international body that fights money laundering, recommends keeping \u201ccomprehensive statistics\u201d to improve asset recovery.<\/p>\n The foreign ministry confirmed to Swissinfo that a centralised register does not exist, as several cantonal and federal bodies are involved. But, it said, the government has followed some of the other audit office recommendations. Switzerland has also \u201cdeepened strategic partnerships\u201d with institutions such as the UN Office on Drugs and Crime and its Stolen Assets Recovery (StAR) programme, it said.<\/p>\n StAR runs a database with records on around $17 billion in ill-gotten assets from a total of 560 cases worldwide. However, this data is just the tip of the iceberg as, according to one estimateExternal link<\/a>, less than 1% of the world\u2019s illicit funds are intercepted.<\/p>\n Weaknesses in prevention<\/p>\n Switzerland is not alone in struggling to handle complex cases. British think-tank the Royal United Services Institute said the UK has \u201ca persistent dirty money problem\u201d and its processExternal link<\/a> for tackling kleptocracy is simply \u201cnot effective\u201d. Among issues are a lack of \u201cshared vision\u201d among the 20 government bodies involved and low political priority.\u00a0<\/p>\n Another challenge across rich countries, despite greater willingness to address banking secrecy and beneficial ownership, is weak prevention, said Oldfield at CiFAR.<\/p>\n \n More<\/p>\n More <\/p>\n Inside SWI\n <\/p>\n Our weekly newsletter on foreign affairs <\/p>\n Switzerland in a fast-moving world. Join us to follow the latest Swiss foreign policy developments. We offer the perfect immersive package. <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Read more: Our weekly newsletter on foreign affairs \u201cWe still have plenty of secrecy jurisdictions, including in Europe, where it\u2019s possible to set up shell companies and hide behind them,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n One ongoing case involves Riad Salameh, Lebanon\u2019s former central bank governor who, along with his brother Raja, has been charged with a raft of alleged crimes including embezzling public funds. The SonntagsZeitung newspaper reportedExternal link<\/a> that $330 million was deposited in accounts in Switzerland via an offshore companyExternal link<\/a>. The brothers have denied the allegations.<\/p>\n The Swiss parliament is now considering tighter measures, including a federal register of beneficial owners of companies and due-diligence rules for legal advisors<\/a>. However, Transparency International\u2019s Swiss chapter arguesExternal link<\/a> that these plans would still fail to bring the Alpine nation in line with international standards.<\/p>\n Restitution \u2018is their right\u2019<\/p>\n As Switzerland and other countries make slow progress on asset recovery and the US retreats from previous undertakings, Ugolor said \u201cthe political momentum around tackling illicit financial flows\u201d is waning. While his native Nigeria has benefited from past Swiss, US and UK leadership and recovered upwards of $3 billion, \u201cyou\u2019re talking about a very limited amount\u201d compared to what has been stolen, he said.<\/p>\n For ordinary Nigerians, the stakes couldn\u2019t be higher. Their country ranks 140 out of 180 countries in Transparency International\u2019s 2024 corruption indexExternal link<\/a>. Around 40% of the population is deemedExternal link<\/a> poor.<\/p>\n For rich nations, too, there will be consequences if they fail to prioritise the issue.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s not charity,\u201d said Ugolor. Handing back stolen money to citizens \u201cis their right\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cYoung people don\u2019t have jobs,\u201d he said. \u201cThe danger is that when corruption continues to steal away their future, they have no option than to move to Europe. If [countries] tackle kleptocracy, there will be prosperity in Africa.\u201d<\/p>\n Edited by Tony Barrett\/vm\/ts<\/p>\n More <\/p>\n Have you heard something about Swiss diplomacy that you\u2019d like us to fact check? <\/p>\n Not all information circulating about Switzerland\u2019s foreign relations is accurate or well understood. Tell us what you\u2019d like us to fact check or clarify.\n <\/p>\n![\"Tanz](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/5a7edc9a4fb33e8f156f26e393c2d22f-gettyimages-158667011-data.jpg\")
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