The U.S. Supreme Court’s 6-3 decision in Securities and Exchange Commission v. Jarkesy, et al. significantly curtails the SEC’s enforcement powers by ruling that the agency’s administrative adjudication of securities fraud...more
In a 6-3 decision, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the administrative adjudication by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of securities fraud cases seeking civil penalties violates the Seventh Amendment right to a...more
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The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is reportedly nearing a settlement with a nationally recognized statistical rating organization (NRSRO) over its failure to preserve certain credit-ratings...more
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Two more broker-dealers became the latest financial institutions to settle with the SEC for failing to maintain and preserve electronic communications. What distinguishes these settlements from the 17 prior...more
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The U.S. Department of Justice issued a revised policy for Evaluation of Corporate Compliance Programs (ECCP), with new guidance on how the DOJ will consider corporate procedures for employees’ business-related...more
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The Department of Justice (DOJ) last week issued revisions to the Criminal Division’s Corporate Enforcement Policy that incentivize companies to promptly self-disclose corporate misconduct, cooperate with the DOJ,...more
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A new memorandum from Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco, released on September 15 (Memorandum), represents one of the most comprehensive updates in years to the approach of the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) in...more
On March 9, the European Parliament (“Parliament”) voted overwhelmingly to limit citizenship-by-investment (“CBI”) programs in the European Union. The vote, formally adopting a report by Sophie Int’ Veld, a Dutch Member of...more
On December 14, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (“FinCEN”) issued a request for information (“RFI”), seeking comment on ways to “streamline, modernize, and update” the anti-money laundering (“AML”) and...more
On September 23, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (“FinCEN”) issued an advance notice of proposed rulemaking (“ANPRM”) to solicit comment on questions related to the implementation of anti-money laundering (“AML”)...more
Fourth and Final Post in a Series on the FATF Plenary Outcomes -
As we have previously blogged, the Financial Action Task Force (“FATF”) held its fourth Plenary on June 21-25, inviting delegates from around the world to...more
In Related Case, Federal Court Holds that Bitcoin-to-Bitcoin “Tumbler” Can Represent “Money Transmission”
On April 27, IRS CI and FBI Special Agents arrested Roman Sterlingov, a dual citizen of Russia and Sweden, for his...more
Related Money Laundering Case Relying on ATM Cash-Outs and BEC Schemes Also Unsealed -
On February 17, the Department of Justice unsealed a sprawling indictment against three members of North Korea’s military intelligence...more
On December 18, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (“FinCEN”) issued a proposal to impose on banks and money service businesses (“affected institutions”) a new set of rules for digital currency transactions involving...more
Regulators’ Joint Statement Attempts to Clarify AML Expectations Regarding Potential Corrupt Actors -
On August 21, the Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) and other banking regulators –...more
9/4/2020
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Bank Secrecy Act ,
Banking Sector ,
BSA/AML ,
Customer Due Diligence (CDD) ,
FATF ,
Financial Institutions ,
FinCEN ,
Joint Statements ,
Politically Exposed Person (PEPs) ,
Risk-Based Approaches
In the rainforests of Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua, the fires often start when drug traffickers try to clear large swaths of land. Due to the dry bush and lack of rainfall, the flames often spread out of control, but in...more
In the past month, the Government Accountability Office (“GAO”), a non-partisan legislative agency that monitors and audits government spending and operations, has issued a series of reports urging banking regulators and...more
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (Act), an unprecedented spending package aimed at alleviating the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic, passed Congress today. We focus here on the Act’s oversight...more
On March 16, the National Whistleblower Center (NWC) called on Attorney General William Barr to form a nationwide task force to monitor and investigate False Claims Act (FCA) allegations related to the Covid-19 pandemic....more
Case Sheds Light on Latest Methods to Evade Detection: “Peeling” Chains -
On March 2, the U.S. government sanctioned and indicted two Chinese nationals for helping North Korea launder nearly $100 million in stolen...more
3/12/2020
/ Bitcoin ,
Brokers ,
China ,
Civil Forfeiture ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Conspiracy ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Currency Exchange ,
Financial Crimes ,
Foreign Nationals ,
Hackers ,
Money Laundering ,
Money Transmitter ,
North Korea ,
Sanctions ,
Virtual Currency ,
White Collar Crimes ,
Wire Fraud
FinCEN Director Kenneth A. Blanco delivered prepared remarks on September 24 at the 2019 Federal Identity (FedID) Forum and Exposition in Tampa, Florida. Director Blanco summarized the topics of his remarks by stating the...more
9/27/2019
/ Acting Directors ,
Authentication ,
Bank Secrecy Act ,
Business E-Mail Compromise (BEC) ,
Cyber Policies ,
Cybersecurity ,
FinCEN ,
Hackers ,
National Security ,
Personally Identifiable Information ,
Popular ,
Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs)
On August 6, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia kept in place $50,000-per-day fines on three Chinese banks—whose identities are redacted—for refusing to comply with subpoenas issued by the Department of...more
8/9/2019
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Appeals ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Records ,
Financial Transactions ,
Foreign Banks ,
Money Laundering ,
National Security ,
North Korea ,
Patriot Act ,
Subpoenas
The Issue of Who Truly Runs and Owns Entities Contines to Gnaw at Congress and Law Enforcement -
First Post in a Two-Post Series on the ILLICIT CASH Act -
On June 10, a bipartisan group of lawmakers in the U.S. Senate...more
6/20/2019
/ Bank Secrecy Act ,
Beneficial Owner ,
BSA/AML ,
Financial Crimes ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
FinCEN ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Money Laundering ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Transparency
On April 15, the UK Treasury released proposed steps, entitled a “consultation,” to adopt the EU’s Fifth Money Laundering Directive (“5AMLD”) into national law, while also seeking comments and evidence from stakeholders to...more
4/23/2019
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Corruption ,
EU Directive ,
Landlords ,
MLD4 ,
MLD5 ,
Real Estate Investments ,
Real Estate Market ,
Real Estate Transactions ,
UK ,
White Collar Crimes
“V-bucks,” the in-game virtual value currency of the wildly popular video game, Fortnite, is reportedly being used to launder the proceeds of stolen credit cards....more
1/30/2019
/ BSA/AML ,
Dark Web ,
Digital Assets ,
Financial Crimes ,
Financial Transactions ,
FinCEN ,
Mobile Apps ,
Money Laundering ,
Money Services Business ,
Money Transmitter ,
Online Gaming ,
Regulatory Standards ,
Video Games ,
Virtual Currency