The concept of the shadow financial system rose to international prominence in the aftermath of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. In an interview with a Pakistani newspaper a month later, Osama bin Laden stated that Al Qaeda were...more
6/18/2024
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
CFTC ,
Cross-Border Transactions ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Export Controls ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinCEN ,
International Trade Commission (ITC) ,
Know Your Customers ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Popular ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Reporting Requirements ,
UK ,
Virtual Currency
With the December 2023 enactment of the Foreign Extortion Prevention Act ("FEPA"), the United States' anti-bribery laws now penalize the "demand-side" of foreign bribery. While, for decades, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act...more
The long-awaited Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act received Royal Assent on 26 October. This represents a significant turning point for the law on corporate criminal liability in the UK, and has been welcomed by...more
11/10/2023
/ Corporate Counsel ,
Corporate Crimes ,
Corporate Entities ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Transparency Act ,
Criminal Liability ,
Failure to Prevent ,
Financial Crimes ,
Fraud ,
Investigations ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
UK ,
UK Bribery Act ,
White Collar Crimes
The Financial Action Task Force ("FATF") is the global standard-setter on anti-money laundering ("AML"), countering terrorist financing ("CFT") and counter proliferation financing. FATF's standards, also referred to as...more
10/31/2023
/ AML/CFT ,
Anti-Money Laundering ,
Cross-Border Transactions ,
EU ,
FATF ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Transactions ,
Money Laundering ,
Popular ,
Terrorism Funding ,
Terrorist Financing Regulations
After several years of discussion and consultation, the UK Government now appears to be close to reforming the law on corporate criminal liability via the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Bill. These changes, if...more
The UK's second economic crime plan builds on the previous plan (2019-2022) and addresses issues that have risen to the fore i.e. the dramatic increase in fraud, the new sanctions landscape, reform of corporate criminal...more
In February 2023, the Financial Action Task Force (“FATF”), the global standard-setter on Anti-Money Laundering policy, issued a report describing the financial crime risks in the art and antiquities market, as well as good...more
Firms that act as financial gate-keepers have obligations to report suspicions or knowledge of money laundering via Suspicious Activity Reports to the National Crime Agency ("NCA"). SARs have been filed for almost 20 years...more
Terrorist financing comes at a price – and in the case of a global building supplies manufacturer that has pleaded guilty in a US court to making payments to terrorist organisations, that price is USD 778 million in fines and...more
11/7/2022
/ Anti-Terrorism Financing ,
Auditors ,
Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Corruption ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Drug Trafficking ,
Due Diligence ,
Human Trafficking ,
ISIS ,
Money Laundering ,
Remediation ,
Terrorist Financing ,
Turkey ,
Whistleblowers
Earlier this summer, the Law Commission published its long awaited proposals on reforming corporate criminal liability in England and Wales (the "Options Paper"), following the launch of its discussion paper in June 2021....more
Earlier this summer, the Law Commission published its long awaited proposals on reforming corporate criminal liability in England and Wales (the "Options Paper"), following the launch of its discussion paper in June 2021....more
On 10 June, the Law Commission published its long awaited proposals on reforming corporate criminal liability in England and Wales (the "Options Paper"), following the launch of its discussion paper in June 2021. Whilst the...more
There is no doubt 2022 has signalled a renewed focus on beneficial ownership transparency. White & Case partners Jonah Anderson and Anneka Randhawa, and associate Laura Higgins have collaborated with Hannah Lilley and Michael...more
4/5/2022
/ AML/CFT ,
Anti-Money Laundering ,
Beneficial Owner ,
Corporate Transparency Act ,
Disclosure ,
Economic Sanctions ,
EU ,
FATF ,
Financial Crimes ,
Financial Institutions ,
FinCEN ,
UK
On 1 March 2022, the UK Government introduced into Parliament the Economic Crime (Transparency and Enforcement) Bill (the "Bill"). The draft legislation contains a number of measures designed to increase transparency and give...more
Key considerations for banks engaging with governments and peer institutions to improve financial crime compliance systems -
Every year, banks spend billions of dollars on core financial crime compliance systems and are...more
11/18/2021
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Banking Sector ,
Banks ,
FATF ,
Financial Crimes ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinCEN ,
Germany ,
Public Private Partnerships (P3s) ,
Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) ,
UK ,
United States
In January 2018, UK law enforcement agencies were granted new powers to pursue the forfeiture of assets. Unexplained wealth orders ("UWOs") initially grabbed the media's attention, but the relative ease with which UK law...more
Governments worldwide are sharpening their focus on money laundering executed through international trade. Anti-money laundering obligations on entities beyond traditional financial institutions continue to expand. Companies...more
Cyber attacks are a national security concern in the UK. While individuals can be victims of such attacks, private sector institutions are often the direct targets. Cyber attacks can critically damage a commercial reputation...more
7/2/2019
/ Bank of England ,
Cooperation Agreement ,
Cross-Border Transactions ,
Cyber Attacks ,
Cyber Crimes ,
Cybersecurity ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
Financial Regulatory Agencies ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Memorandum of Understanding ,
Monetary Authority of Singapore ,
Popular ,
Singapore ,
UK
The Law Commission has published its much anticipated report on reform of the UK's anti-money laundering and terrorism financing regime, and in particular of the system of suspicious activity reports ("SARs"). The proposed...more
6/20/2019
/ Amended Rules ,
Anti-Money Laundering ,
Commingling ,
Corporate Crimes ,
Criminal Liability ,
Financial Institutions ,
Money Laundering ,
National Crime Agency (NCA) ,
Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (POCA) ,
Ring-Fencing ,
Risk Mitigation ,
Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) ,
Terrorist Financing Regulations ,
UK
An informant is sent into the midst of a criminal gang. He is wearing a concealed device, crudely taped to his chest. Law enforcement agents listen in from the back of an unmarked van parked inconspicuously nearby hoping to...more
6/14/2019
/ Covert Human Intelligence Source (CHIS) ,
Criminal Investigations ,
European Convention on Human Rights ,
Evidence ,
Immunity ,
Informants ,
Organized Crime ,
Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 (RIPA) ,
Sentence Reduction ,
Serious Fraud Office (SFO) ,
Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 (SOCPA) ,
UK ,
White Collar Crimes ,
Wiretapping
Canada legalised recreational cannabis in October 2018 and it may be that other countries follow suit. UK and US investors, and those who facilitate investments in legal recreational cannabis businesses overseas, need to be...more
3/25/2019
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Canada ,
Criminal Liability ,
Criminal Proceeds ,
Cross-Border Transactions ,
Decriminalization of Marijuana ,
Financial Institutions ,
Foreign Investment ,
Investor Protection ,
Marijuana Related Businesses ,
National Crime Agency (NCA) ,
Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (POCA) ,
Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) ,
UK
Following mounting calls for reform of the UK's corporate criminal liability regime, the Government is expected to consult later this year on potential reforms, which are likely to include a new corporate offence of failing...more
3/14/2019
/ Compliance ,
Corporate Crimes ,
Corporate Liability ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Criminal Liability ,
Failure to Prevent ,
Financial Crimes ,
Money Laundering ,
Proposed Amendments ,
Proposed Rules ,
Serious Fraud Office (SFO) ,
UK Bribery Act ,
UK Criminal Finances Act 2017
Tech companies of U.S. origin tend to have compliance programs focused on U.S. laws, including the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (the "FCPA") and relevant tax and labor laws. The UK has enacted laws covering bribery and...more
2/8/2019
/ Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Liability ,
Cross-Border Transactions ,
Due Diligence ,
Extraterritoriality Rules ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Modern Slavery Act ,
Risk Assessment ,
Strict Liability ,
Tax Evasion ,
Technology Sector ,
UK ,
UK Bribery Act ,
UK Criminal Finances Act 2017
Financial firms play an integral role in preventing, identifying, investigating and reporting criminal activity, including terrorist financing, money laundering, and many other finance-related crimes. It is a critical role...more
2/2/2019
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Bank Secrecy Act ,
Banking Sector ,
Confidentiality Policies ,
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ,
EU ,
Financial Institutions ,
FinCEN ,
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) ,
Information Sharing ,
Innovative Technology ,
Money Laundering ,
Patriot Act ,
Privacy Laws ,
Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) ,
Technology Sector ,
Terrorist Financing
The UK Government kicked off the New Year with a reminder that tackling economic crime remains top of its agenda. The Home Secretary and Chancellor announced last week that they will chair the new "Economic Crime Strategic...more