The U.S. is the easiest place in the world for a criminal, terrorist, tax cheat, or kleptocrat to open an anonymous shell company to launder their money with impunity. Anonymous corporations are great ways to hide money and other assets — they can hold a bank account or buy a yacht. Criminals often layer anonymous corporations, with one owning another and so on, making it even harder for law enforcement to “trace the money” and figure out who is directing the company’s activity. It’s time to ending the use of anonymous shell companies as vehicles for illicit activity by requiring that the true owners of U.S. companies be disclosed at the time of formation and updated upon any change.
Transparency Measures Have Broad Support from Financial Institutions, Law Enforcement, and Anti-Corruption Advocates
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Bipartisan pieces of legislation introduced on June 28, 2017 aim to crack down on one of the prime enablers of criminal money laundering and terrorist financing — the abuse of anonymous shell companies.
Today, Senators Whitehouse, Grassley, and Feinstein and Representatives Maloney, King, Royce, Waters, and Moore introduced a bipartisan bill to end the use of anonymous shell companies. If passed by Congress and signed by the President, the measure would disrupt the global system for money laundering used by corrupt public officials, terrorists, drug cartels, human trafficking operations, and others and provide leadership to the international move toward transparency.
The FACT Coalition joined 43 other organizations to send a letter to Reps. Maloney, King, Royce, Waters, and Moore supporting the Corporate Transparency Act (H.R. 3089), which would enable law enforcement to more effectively and efficiently conduct investigations, enhancing safety by saving time and resources in pursuing complex money laundering operations. The full letter can be read below or downloaded here.
The Financial Accountability and Corporate Transparency Coalition (FACT Coalition) sent a letter to Rep. Lynch and Rep. King supporting the Secure Government Buildings from Espionage Act of 2017 (H.R. 2426), which will enhance our national security by requiring bidders for high-security leases to disclose their beneficial ownership information to the federal government. The full letter can be read below or downloaded here.
Massive protests in Venezuela, Tunisia, Brazil, Morocco, and the Dominican Republic over the last few weeks have highlighted political graft around the globe, and the ensuing instability and violence that can result.
Enabling Criminal Activity in the U.S. and Around the World
America is one of the easiest places in the world in which to form an anonymous shell company—this facilitates crimes that victimize ordinary Americans.
