Singapore Seen as Destination for ‘Scam Farm’ Proceeds
Singapore is facing renewed scrutiny over its defenses against dirty money after police seized hundreds of millions of dollars in assets linked to the Prince Group, a conglomerate labelled by U.S. and UK authorities as a “transnational criminal empire,” according to the Financial Times.
Wildlife Trafficking’s Ties to Guns, Drugs and Human Smuggling
Wildlife traffickers are funneling dirty money through the same financial pipelines used for such illicit activity as human trafficking, child sexual exploitation, and the illegal sale of weapons around the world, according to new University of Waterloo research cited by CBC News.
Brazil Imposes AML Rules on VASPs, Stablecoins
Brazil’s central bank unveiled long-awaited rules for virtual assets on Monday, extending anti–money laundering (AML) and counterterrorism financing (CTF) obligations to crypto firms and classifying fiat-pegged crypto transactions as foreign-exchange operations, Reuters reported.
Albanian Organized Crime Seen as Growing Threat in Europe
Albanian organized crime groups have tightened their grip at home and expanded across Europe while drawing minimal pushback from Brussels, according to a Follow the Money investigation conducted with media partner BLAST.
California Crime Ring Using ID Docs of Foreign Scholars to Defraud Financial Firms
ID thieves based in California’s San Fernando Valley and Glendale have been using the Social Security Numbers of foreign scholars who left the U.S. years ago to file hundreds of bank and credit-card applications, according to a cybercrime expert who spoke with the Los Angeles Times.
Ex-NAB Staffer Charged as Alleged ‘Gatekeeper’ for $200mn Fraud Syndicate
Australian authorities charged a former National Australia Bank employee they allege acted as the “gatekeeper of funds” for a Sydney crime syndicate accused of defrauding “all financial institutions,” according to a Reuters report.
Ex-EU Commissioner Charged with Money Laundering
Belgian authorities have officially charged former European commissioner Didier Reynders with money laundering, a person familiar with the case confirmed to Follow the Money. He is not being held in custody.
A Third of Inspected Law Firms Break UK’s AML Rules
A third of inspected law firms in England and Wales are breaching anti-money laundering (AML) requirements, according to a report on new figures from the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA).
Coinbase Fined €22mn for Failing to Monitor Europe Payments
The Central Bank of Ireland has fined cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase €21.5 million for failing to properly monitor transactions, including activity potentially linked to child sexual exploitation, drug trafficking, money laundering and other crimes.
U.S. Lifts Sanctions on Belavia and Lukashenko Aircraft in Belarus
The U.S. Treasury Department eased parts of its Belarus sanctions regime on Tuesday, lifting measures on the state airline Belavia and authorizing certain transactions tied to President Alexander Lukashenko’s presidential aircraft, Reuters reported.