U.S. Extends ‘Foreign Terrorist Organization’ Sanctions to Brazil’s Gangs
The Trump administration will designate Brazil’s two largest criminal gangs as Foreign Terrorist Organizations effective this June, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement Thursday.
FCA Sees Industry Weaknesses in Sanctions Due Diligence, Trade Compliance
Financial firms have improved their sanctions controls but persistent weaknesses in due diligence, screening, and asset-freezing controls continue to drive compliance violations, the U.K. Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said in a multi-firm review published Thursday.
How Criminals Their Changed Tactics in Response to EU’s Anti-Mafia Rules
Local governments in southern Italy that colluded with organized crime deliberately avoided large EU-funded projects to stay below anti-mafia certification thresholds, according to new academic research.
BNP Paribas Makes Case to Overturn $21mn Sudan Human-Rights Verdict
BNP Paribas is asking a federal appeals court to overturn a landmark jury verdict that found the French bank liable for enabling human rights abuses in Sudan, arguing the trial judge misapplied both Swiss and U.S. law.
Baltic FIUs Warn Client Migration Concentrated AML Risks at Single Digital Bank
Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania have jointly concluded that deliberate de-risking campaigns by traditional Baltic banks have driven large-scale client migration toward Lithuanian fintech firms, concentrating money laundering risk in a single digital institution.
U.S. Regulators to Consider Citizenship Status of Bank Customers a Risk Factor
President Donald Trump signed an executive order Tuesday directing federal financial regulators to treat undocumented immigrants as potential credit and compliance risks.
Unlike the Marquis, France’s Biggest Ponzi Schemer Avoids Prison
Gérard Lhéritier, the French businessman convicted of running what prosecutors called the largest Ponzi scheme ever uncovered in France, has avoided prison after negotiating a last-minute plea bargain citing age and health.
Spain’s Ex-PM Zapatero Charged with Money Laundering
Spain’s National Court has charged former Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero with money laundering, influence peddling, document falsification, and related criminal offenses stemming from the government’s €53-million pandemic-era bailout of Plus Ultra airlines.
Arrest of Venezuelan ‘Bag Man’ Alex Saab Seen as Key to Maduro Prosecution
Alex Saab, the businessman widely seen as the financial fixer for ousted Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, was charged with money laundering in federal court in Miami on Monday.
Conmebol Chief Accused of Pocketing Millions Recovered from FIFA Scandal
The president of South America’s soccer federation faces an ethics complaint alleging he took millions of dollars from funds the body recovered after the 2015 global soccer corruption scandal.