Financial Crime

21st November 2019

ECB flags failings in dirty-money screening at Malta’s top bank

Malta’s biggest bank failed for years to detect or address risks involving thousands of payments, the European Central Bank (ECB) said, detailing “severe shortcomings” that could have allowed money laundering or other criminal activities. A confidential ECB report seen by Reuters said Bank of Valletta (BoV) BOV.MT had not dealt… Read More

18th November 2019

NAB faces ‘significant’ penalties for money laundering breaches

NAB is facing a significant financial penalty from the financial intelligence regulator after self reporting a large number of breaches of anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism laws and says there may be more to come. The bank is still working on fixing shortcomings within its anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing systems… Read More

15th November 2019

Activists Worry Britain’s Financial Watchdog Is Losing Its Zeal

About seven years ago, the U.K. agency set up to prosecute errant executives and publicly traded companies started taking on some meaty cases. The Serious Fraud Office investigated everything from derivative traders to top brass at blue-chip darlings Barclays Plc and engine maker Rolls-Royce Holdings Plc. Now some academics,… Read More

11th November 2019

HSBC Warned Twice by Bank of England on Conduct Risk Control

The Bank of England has warned HSBC Holdings Plc for two years in a row that it hasn’t done enough to tackle concerns about how the bank handles risks including financial crime and staff conduct. Samir Assaf, HSBC’s top investment banker, told executives on a conference call this week… Read More

8th November 2019

Precious metals: The ‘gold standard’ in money laundering

Despite significant regulatory attention on emerging financial crime risks related to crypto assets, one of the oldest and most sought-after physical assets — gold — remains a prevalent money laundering risk. A recent Thomson Reuters Regulatory Intelligence article detailed how gold bars fraudulently stamped with logos of major refineries were being inserted… Read More

7th November 2019

Latvian government backs special economic crimes court

The Latvian government on November 5 supported a Justice Ministry plan to establish a specialized economic affairs court that will start operating as of January 1, 2021. However, Interior Minister Sandis Ģirģens (KPV LV) spoke against the legislative amendments and minister also called for an audit of the judicial sector before… Read More

6th November 2019

Free Trade Zones and Financial Crime – A Faustian Bargain?

Free trade zones (FTZs) present both opportunities and challenges for globalised trade. At their best, they facilitate frictionless trade and manufacturing, creating jobs and economic growth for local communities. At their worst, they enable illicit trade and the laundering of criminal proceeds. In this article, the authors examine how the… Read More

6th November 2019

Over five million suspicious deposits recorded since cash threshold rate lowered, says Bank Negara governor

Over five million suspicious cash deposits were reported up to September after Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) lowered the daily cash threshold to RM25,000 starting this year, Datuk Nor Shamsiah Md Yunus said today. The cash transactions were valued at RM483 billion, the BNM governor said, saying it was still too… Read More

5th November 2019

Used to impunity, Bangladesh elite face corruption crackdown

AP — As gamblers called out bets around craps and roulette tables at a sports club in Bangladesh’s capital, dozens of black-clad security forces burst inside. Gamblers were ordered to the floor as police and members of Bangladesh’s Rapid Action Battalion, which normally handles major counterterrorism operations, cracked open iron… Read More

31st October 2019

Italy mafia networks are more complex and powerful, says minister

Italian mafia networks have become less high profile in recent years as they spread their activities into new sectors, but they are just as dangerous, the interior minister, Luciana Lamorgese, has said. Citing new data, Lamorgese said that organised crime groups “have made extensive transformations” while adopting “increasingly complex” models… Read More