U.S. Oversight of MSBs is Weakest in Years as Crypto Usage Surges
Cryptocurrency usage is surging in the United States. You wouldn’t know that from the number of federal examiners tasked with supervising the industry for anti-money-laundering (AML) compliance though.
Two Associates of Ex-EU Commissioner Charged as Dirty-Money Probe Grows
Belgian prosecutors have charged two people close to former European Commissioner Didier Reynders as part of a money-laundering investigation that until now had focused on Reynders alone.
French Police Raid Arab World Institute in Tax Fraud Case Tied to Epstein
Police raided the Arab World Institute in Paris on Monday as prosecutors widened an investigation into former French culture minister Jack Lang and his daughter, Caroline, over suspected financial links to Jeffrey Epstein.
Kuwait and Papua New Guinea Make FATF’s ‘Grey List’
The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) added Kuwait and Papua New Guinea to its “grey list” of countries under closer monitoring, saying both have pledged to fix weaknesses in their safeguards against illicit money flows.
Louis Vuitton Pays €500,000 for AML Failings
Louis Vuitton’s Netherlands unit has agreed to pay a €500,000 settlement after Dutch authorities concluded the company failed to adequately vet customers who repeatedly made large cash purchases over a prolonged period.
FinCEN Launches New Whistleblower Portal
The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) has launched a dedicated portal to accept whistleblower tips on money laundering, fraud, and sanctions violations, the U.S. Treasury Department announced on Friday.
Paxful to Pay $4 Million for Helping Sex Traffickers and Money Launderers
Paxful Holdings Inc., a peer-to-peer virtual currency trading platform, was sentenced on Tuesday to pay a $4-million criminal penalty after pleading guilty to conspiracies tied to illegal prostitution, anti-money-laundering failures and transmitting criminal proceeds.
How Dirty Crypto Gets Cleaned in a Gig Economy
Drug cartels and other criminal groups are increasingly using cryptocurrencies and a growing “gig” workforce of freelance brokers and couriers to launder cash and evade law enforcement, Bloomberg Businessweek reported.
MONEYVAL Outlines Challenges in Curtailing Criminal Misuse of Crypto
The Council of Europe’s anti-money-laundering body on Tuesday published a new report on how criminals exploit crypto-assets to launder illicit proceeds, fund terrorism, and evade sanctions.
Stalled Corruption Case Ties El Salvador’s Leader to Suspect PDVSA Payments
El Salvador’s top prosecutor has effectively halted a money-laundering investigation into a Venezuela-financed oil venture whose funds flowed into bank accounts linked to President Nayib Bukele.