Abstract

The paper presents the money laundering as phenomenon with transnational elements in criminal and legal aspects and the role of Financial Intelligence Unit in prevention and combating money laundering. The basic concepts are defined, money laundering as criminal act in it's all stages, the principles and fundamentals of international regulations analyzed, international legal frame, guidelines and Directives of EU, and the regulatory system in Croatia are covered by statutes and money laundering prevention Regulations is presented. The purchase of shares, of real estate, the establishment of dirty investment fund and the use of the banking system for the embedding of such resources is a danger to the credibility of a whole country and to the security of the financial and banking system. It is crucial to keep up with European approaches and recommendations, to strive for further improvement of the laws and the modernization of the system and harmonization. In such efforts helps anticipations of new aspects criminal problems and its legal solutions countries with long term criminal and legal practices such as German and SAD.