The first meeting of the BRICS ACWG under India’s 2026 Presidency concluded virtually on June 3, 2026. Led by the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), the meeting focused on enhancing international cooperation to combat cross-border financial crimes, asset recovery, and illicit financial flows.
Key Priorities of India’s Presidency
- Asset Recovery: Established mechanisms to prevent economic offenders from seeking safe havens and prioritized real-time tracking of illicit wealth.
- Operational Efficiency: Agreed on direct communication lines between investigative agencies to bypass prolonged diplomatic channels.
- Digital Governance: Promoted the use of blockchain, data analytics, and standardized templates to streamline legal assistance and improve transparency.
- Expert Network: Launched a specialized directory of focal points to facilitate informal agency-to-agency intelligence sharing, reducing reliance on formal Mutual Legal Assistance Treaties (MLATs) for preliminary data.
Institutional Framework in India
- DoPT: Nodal ministry for international anti-corruption coordination.
- CBI: Premier agency for corruption and economic offenses; functions as India’s National Central Bureau for Interpol.
- Enforcement Directorate (ED): Investigates money laundering under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
- Fugitive Economic Offenders Act, 2018: Enables confiscation of properties belonging to economic offenders fleeing Indian jurisdiction.
IASPOINT Booster Facts
- ACWG Genesis: Established in 2015 following the BRICS Ufa Summit (Russia).
- Chairmanship: Chaired by the nation holding the rotating BRICS Presidency (India for 2026).
- BRICS Membership: Expanded from original five to include Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE, plus ten partner countries.
- Legal Routing: International extradition and recovery requests are routed through the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) under the Extradition Act, 1962.
- Global Alignment: ACWG aligns its work with the UN Convention against Corruption (UNCAC) via partnership with the UNODC.