Fraud at the CPF: “A very important part” of Tracfin’s operations in 2021

(AFP / INA FASSBENDER)

The Personal Training Account (CPF) has been available since January 1, 2019, with which anyone active can purchase training rights in euros via an online platform.

Bercy’s Financial Intelligence Unit released its annual report on Wednesday 27th July. This indicates that the Personal Training Account (CPF) has fraud

greatly increased

in Tracfin’s business last year.

Exercise equipment fraud “clearly illustrated

a very significant part” in 2021,

its director Guillaume Valette-Valla told AFP, noting that the phenomenon was confirmed in the first six months of this year.

The Personal Training Account (CPF), which has existed since January 1, 2019, enables every active person to acquire training rights

in euros and no longer in hours,

via an online platform. It is the Caisse des dépôts (CDC) that directly pays the training companies, which are sometimes empty shells

trying to siphon off public funds.

Empty shells abounded in 2021: reports of suspicious transactions sent to Tracfin — alerts sent by professionals like the CDC or banks suspecting abuse — have

rose to 116 from just 10 in 2020.

This represents a suspicion of fraud

43.2 million

euros compared to 7.8 million euros in the previous year, stresses the Bercy cell in its report.

Fraud methods have evolved

At the same time, fraud methods have evolved, observes Guillaume Valette-Valla. In 2020, scams started popping up

“Classic Patterns of Identity Theft

of the beneficiary,” he recalls.

But since then the networks have become much more professional and have now

transnational criminal organizations,

especially outside the European Union, along the lines of older scams like those on the carbon market.

Despite its very rapid development, the CPF fraud is far from the only state aid scheme to have been the victim of fraud, as Tracfin continues to note

Emergency Aid Scam

in connection with the Covid-19 crisis. Fraud in short-time work compensation, solidarity funds and state-guaranteed loans meant a financial investment of more than 16 million euros.

Tracfin, in which also participates

Tracking the assets of Russian oligarchs

related to the European sanctions against Moscow since the invasion of Ukraine amounts to 1.18 billion euros in financial and non-financial assets frozen since the beginning of the conflict in France.