Money laundering fuels everything from terror finance and sanctions evasion to human trafficking and corruption. However, experts warn that our anti-money laundering efforts are on the brink of failure, as law enforcement only interdicts less than one-half of one percent of the trillions of dollars laundered each year. We need a new approach to addressing money laundering and the dangerous threats to our safety and security from the crimes funded through illicit finance.
With a robust first rulemaking on the landmark Corporate Transparency Act (CTA), the Biden Administration has taken an important step toward delivering on its commitment to making the fight against corruption a foremost national security priority.
The Financial Accountability and Corporate Transparency (FACT) Coalition today commended the introduction by Senators Whitehouse (D-RI) and Wicker (R-MS) of the Establishing New Authorities for Businesses Laundering and Enabling Risks to Security (ENABLERS) Act as an amendment to the Senate National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).
Let’s talk statistics. On an average year, anywhere between 300 billion to 2 trillion U.S. dollars are laundered globally. To put it into perspective, this sum rivals the economic output of Brazil, the world’s eighth largest economy. As numbers grow, the United States’ position on money laundering and financial transparency policies continues to falter, further …
Today, Congress passed a continuing resolution to fund the U.S. government through December 16, which now awaits President Biden’s signature. While the measure will ensure that agencies can continue operations at existing budgetary levels, the resolution puts off approving the increased funding for key offices in the U.S. Treasury Department contemplated in both chambers’ appropriations bills for fiscal year 2023.
The Sentry’s report points to major ways the international community must act to deny kleptocrats the “brain trust” on which they rely to perpetrate their crimes. It’s up to the U.S. to be a leader, not a laggard, in implementing a robust anti-money laundering regime.
Join FACT and the Hudson Institute for an in-person, Senate briefing on September 28th to learn about the scale of the problem posed by professional “enablers” and the future of this crucial reform agenda.
