Denmark’s FSA Refers Nordea Unit to Police over AML Concerns
Denmark’s financial regulator has reported a local unit of Nordea Bank to police over suspected breaches of anti-money-laundering rules and asked authorities to open a criminal investigation, the authority disclosed Monday.
Iran’s Largest Crypto Exchange Is Closely Tied to Nation’s Elite
Iran’s largest cryptocurrency exchange was founded and is controlled by two brothers from the Kharrazi family, one of the Islamic Republic’s most influential clerical dynasties and now closely tied to new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei.
Even with Stronger Western Ties, Syria Is a Big Buyer of Russian Oil
Russia has emerged as Syria’s dominant oil supplier, with shipments rising about 75 percent to roughly 60,000 barrels per day this year despite Damascus’s pivot toward the West and lingering public anger over Moscow’s military backing of ousted leader Bashar al-Assad.
U.S. Blacklists Ex-DRC Leader Kabila over Alleged Support for Rebel Groups
The United States imposed sanctions on former Democratic Republic of the Congo President Joseph Kabila, accusing him of supporting armed groups that Washington says have fueled conflict and instability in eastern Congo.
U.S. Banks Left in the Dark on New Citizenship-Verification Expectations
U.S. banks have heard little from the Trump administration about the scope of an expected executive order that would require them to collect citizenship or immigration-status data on their customers, leaving the industry warning of multibillion-dollar costs and the prospect of millions of Americans being shut out of the banking system.
Julius Baer Ordered to Rehire Staffer Who ID’d Potential Sanctions Violations
A German labor court has ruled that Julius Baer Group’s Frankfurt arm wrongly dismissed a manager who had raised internal concerns about alleged sanctions violations linked to the onboarding of clients from Iran and Russia.
OFAC Targets Iran ‘Rahbar’ Networks, Warns on China Refinery Risks
OFAC designated 35 entities and individuals it said help run Iran’s shadow-banking system, focusing on private companies known as “rahbars” that move money for sanctioned Iranian banks through foreign shell companies and front-company accounts.
Greek Government Clashes with EU Prosecutor’s Office over Corruption Probe
Greece’s ruling New Democracy party has launched an aggressive campaign against European Chief Prosecutor Laura Codruța Kövesi over her office’s investigation into a corruption scandal involving hundreds of millions of euros in European Union farm subsidies.
‘Father’ of Catalan Nationalism Deemed Unfit for €290mn Corruption Trial
A Spanish court has declared former Catalan leader Jordi Pujol, 95, unfit to stand trial in a long-running corruption case alleging his family concealed as much as €290 million in illicitly obtained wealth in Andorra
Web of Shell Firms Tie Trump Operative to Russian Money in Albanian Politics
A network of shell companies tied to sanctioned Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska helped finance an Albanian conservative party’s hiring of a former Donald Trump campaign operative ahead of Albania’s 2017 general election.