Illicit Finance | Certain Risk

A photo of Rosneft headquarters seen at night — Attribution (edited version, CC BY-SA 4.0): “Роснефть.JPG” by Sergey Korovkin 84, via Wikimedia Commons, licensed under Creative Commons Attribution–ShareAlike 4.0 International. Edited from the original (changes made).

How an IT Misstep Revealed a Secret $90bn Russian Oil-Smuggling Operation

An IT misconfiguration has exposed an apparent network of oil traders that has helped move at least $90 billion of Russian crude and has become central to keeping export revenues flowing to the Kremlin, the Financial Times reported Friday.

A black-and-white view of the Charles Schwab office in Manhattan, with the sign edited to be gold — Attribution (CC BY-SA 4.0): “53rd St 6th Av td 19 - CBS Building.jpg” by Tdorante10, via Wikimedia Commons, licensed under Creative Commons Attribution–ShareAlike 4.0 International. This version was edited using AI (the “Charles Schwab” sign was recolored to gold; the rest remains black-and-white).

Charles Schwab and the Palace Epstein Tried to Buy Days Before His Arrest

Long after his 2008 conviction for procuring a minor for prostitution and just days before his final arrest in 2019, Jeffrey Epstein had his eyes on a palace in Morocco. He wanted to buy it, but he needed help.

A photo of an old Swedbank building in Knivsta. — The old Swedbank building, Knivsta.jpg Author: Brorsson Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_old_Swedbank_building,_Knivsta.jpg License: CC BY-SA 3.0 — https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ Changes: Cropped from original

Swedbank Faces Fresh Investigation Over AML Controls

Sweden’s Financial Supervisory Authority (FSA) has launched an investigation into whether Swedbank is complying with the country’s anti-money-laundering (AML) rules on customer due diligence.

Fed Governor Bowman participated in a discussion on the view from the Federal Reserve at the Exchequer Club Luncheon in Washington, D.C. on February 21, 2024.

Lawmakers Question Bowman on Fed Reforms

A group of six Senate Democrats is demanding that the Federal Reserve turn over information about the ongoing overhaul of its bank supervision division following reports of internal tension linked to staff cuts and the alleged sidelining of examiners.

A view of the Abu Dhabi skyline as seen beneath a palm tree.

Personal Data of Politicos and Business Leaders Exposed at UAE Finance Summit

Scanned passports and other identity documents belonging to hundreds of participants in Abu Dhabi’s flagship investment conference were exposed online via an unprotected cloud server linked to Abu Dhabi Finance Week (ADFW).

Two women hold up signs in an anti-corruption protest in Albania — JoanaMeraja, “Protests Against Corruption 2024 12.jpg” (27 January 2024), Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY 4.0

Albania’s Latest Corruption Scandal Could Complicate Rama’s EU Plans

There has been visible discontent with Albania’s government in recent weeks, with protestors hurling petrol bombs at government buildings and calling out Prime Minister Edi Rama by name.

2 November 2022; Changpeng Zhao, Co-Founder & CEO, Binance, at Media Village during day one of Web Summit 2022 at the Altice Arena in Lisbon, Portugal. Photo by Ben McShane/Web Summit via Sportsfile — Attribution (CC BY 2.0): “2022 - Press Conferences BE6 1591 (52472274614).jpg” by Web Summit, via Wikimedia Commons, licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0).

Pardoned and Poolside: Zhao Returns to U.S. for Crypto Summit

Changpeng Zhao, the founder of crypto exchange Binance who was pardoned by President Trump in October, returned to the U.S. this week and attended a Trump-backed crypto conference alongside the president’s sons and senior administration officials.

A photo of Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff at the Kremlin — “Kushner and Witkoff at the Kremlin” — kremlin.ru (2 Dec 2025), via Wikimedia Commons: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kushner_and_Witkoff_at_the_Kremlin.jpg Licensed under CC BY 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ No changes made.

Will It Be War or a Nuke Deal? U.S. and Iran Brace for Both

U.S. and Iranian officials are describing progress in their ongoing nuclear negotiations even as both sides accelerate visible preparations for a conflict that officials and analysts now frame as a genuine near-term risk.

An AI-edited image of former Honduran president Juan Orlando Hernández standing on a beach wearing sunglasses. — “Conferencia sobre Prosperidad y Seguridad en Centroamérica Miami, Florida , Estados Unidos . (35194825951).jpg” — Presidencia El Salvador, via Wikimedia Commons (source: Flickr). CC0 1.0 (public domain): https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/ This version has been edited with AI (derivative/adapted from the original).

‘Absolutely F***ing Nuts’: Ex-Honduran Leader Got Free Waldorf Stay After Pardon

Last December, the Trump administration moved swiftly to free former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernández after President Donald Trump granted him an unexpected pardon for his 2024 conviction on bribery and drug-trafficking charges. Few would’ve predicted what happened next.

An edited photo with Jeffrey Epstein's face redacted and images of his emails used as background.

Epstein Revelations Spur Criminal Investigations and an Ex-Royal Arrest

The fallout of the release of the Epstein Files continued this week, with emergence of new details of the deceased sex trafficker’s finances, the launch of additional investigations into suspicious money flows and related sexual-abuse allegations, and the arrest of a former British royal.