The United States should strengthen its efforts to fight money laundering and terrorist financing associated with Afghan opium ahead of a military withdrawal from the nation, U.S. officials said Wednesday.
A proposed Uruguayan law that would permit and regulate recreational marijuana use poses serious legal and regulatory questions for American banks doing business in the region, according to compliance officers and former U.S. attorneys.
U.S. investigators Wednesday disclosed the seizure of $31 million from seven American banks as part of a probe into an alleged Peruvian money laundering network that exploited industrial firms and shell companies.
When Mexico's President Felipe Calderon relinquishes power in December to his successor, he'll leave behind a decidedly mixed legacy in the fight against the country's drug cartels. But U.S. law enforcement agents and other officials worry that Mexico's next leader could do worse, sources say.
Dozens of U.S. banks along the country's southern border are denying new accounts to wealthy Mexican nationals and corporations because of due diligence troubles caused by drug-related violence in Mexico.
A top BCCI investigator spoke with reporter Larissa Bernardes about some of the complex money laundering schemes he encountered during his undercover work.
The U.S. Justice Department continues to seized more than $3.2 million in nearly 400 accounts tied to narcotics dealers, Transparency International published its annual corruption report and more, in this weeks roundup.
More than 100 medical marijuana clinics have seen their accounts closed in the last 18 months by at least three U.S. banks concerned about regulatory repercussions, say cannabis advocacy groups.
The opaque financial structures of the sports sector, including soccer and basketball, can be abused by criminals seeking to disguise dirty money and climb social ladders, an intergovernmental organization said Wednesday.
Arizona's Supreme Court struck down a ruling Wednesday that would have allowed the attorney general to order freezes on wire transfers from 28 other states to locations in northern Mexico.
Africa is fast becoming one of the world's largest hubs for smuggling cocaine, heroin and prescription drugs from South America and Asia into Europe and the United States, according to a United Nations watchdog group.
The United States released $197 million in aid for equipment and training in Mexico, as part of a regional program to combat drug trafficking and terrorism, according to government officials.
Bolivia's decision to oust the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration from the country will likely open the way for increase in regional drug trafficking and organized crime, say analysts.
U.S. Justice Department prosecutions involving narcotics are expected to remain flat for fiscal year 2008, as immigration violations will again be the most commonly charged federal offense, according to a report by a Syracuse University organization that tracks trends in law enforcement.
As the nexus between terrorist financing and drug trafficking widens, financial institutions will have to more closely scrutinize their correspondent banking relationships, say consultants.
The case points to the difficulties that large money service businesses face in detecting compliance violations at associated stores, compliance consultants say.
Microstructuring, a method of money laundering that is challenging for financial institutions to detect, is likely to be looked at more closely by regulators and law enforcement, even as institutions protest that is difficult to detect, according to compliance officers and consultants.
Software firm MindArk, creators of Entropia Universe, is on the verge of releasing automated teller machine-style cards that allow players to access real dollars from their virtual world accounts, something consultants say will make them an attractive venue for criminals to launder illicit funds.
If online payments system e-gold, Ltd. is convicted on charges of operating as an unlicensed money services business and other crimes, significant changes could be in store for similar digital currency businesses and the banks that service them.
The growth of virtual economies on the Internet presents an opportunity for criminals, who can launder money by trading virtual property and converting profits from virtual cash to real currency, according to a report issued by consulting firm Deloitte.