The U.S. Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) and the China Anti-Money Laundering Monitoring and Analysis Center (CAMLMAC) recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to create a “framework to facilitate expanded U.S.-China collaboration, communication, and cooperation” between each agency’s financial intelligence units (FIUs). News Release (December 11, 2015).

In announcing the MOU, FinCEN Director Jennifer Shasky Calvery stated that “this MOU provides an important foundation for a reciprocal exchange of extremely valuable financial information to help thwart terrorism and money laundering in these perilous times…. Building this mutually beneficial bridge of cooperation will serve each country’s vital interests and help protect the citizens of both of our countries from the damage that criminals and terrorist financiers can inflict.”

As an increasing amount of business is conducted between the United States and China, the MOU serves important investigative interests shared by both countries, namely, to allow for the sharing of “extremely valuable information to provide leads, expose criminal networks, and help thwart illicit activity in the vast and interconnected global economy,” as stated by the FinCEN press release.  For China, signing the MOU is also an important action to push forward its domestic anti-corruption campaign, internationally.