Illicit Finance

Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei has obtained a blue check mark on his official English-language X account, despite the social-media platform’s policy barring sanctioned individuals from purchasing its premium subscription service, CNBC reported.

House Republicans have opened an investigation into alleged hospice fraud in California, citing a CBS News investigation that found widespread warning signs among hospice operators in Los Angeles County and raising concerns about potentially tens of millions of dollars in taxpayer losses.

Britain’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) defended its decision to award a short-term artificial intelligence contract to Palantir Technologies on Tuesday, telling lawmakers the U.S. firm would not have access to regulatory intelligence as concerns mounted over sensitive data and the growing reach of major technology providers in government.

Companies owned by 13 men close to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán won more than €28 billion in public contracts from 2010 to late 2025, according to a Financial Times investigation based on an analysis of nearly 350,000 state procurement contracts.

Colombian President Gustavo Petro has been designated a “priority target” by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration as federal prosecutors in New York examine his alleged ties to drug traffickers.

Two U.S. senators are set to introduce bipartisan legislation that would prohibit Commodity Futures Trading Commission-regulated prediction-market platforms from offering contracts tied to sporting events.

Prosecutors in Taiwan have indicted 10 people accused of operating a cross-border money laundering network that used Macau casinos and credit cards to launder more than $1 billion in funds.

Margaret Ryan, the former head of enforcement at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), resigned last week after clashing with agency leaders over the direction of the watchdog’s oversight, including cases tied to President Donald Trump, his family, and his administration.

President Donald Trump is facing bipartisan blowback after his administration temporarily eased sanctions on Iranian oil, a move that could allow Tehran to sell up to 140 million barrels now at sea and generate as much as $14 billion as oil prices surge during the U.S.-backed war against Iran.

The trial of former U.S. Congressman David Rivera started Monday in Miami as the Florida Republican faces charges that he illegally lobbied American officials on behalf of Venezuelan interests without registering as a foreign agent.