Financial intelligence

J5 countries host "Cyber Challenge" focused on data mining and financial reporting

Retrieved on: 
Thursday, November 2, 2023
DEX, Challenge, Canada Revenue Agency, Intelligence, NASA International Space Apps Challenge, The Royal Canadian Mounted Police in Quebec, FINTRAC, Joint Chiefs of Staff, FIU, Tax, Private sector, HMRC, Organization, The Challenge, Crime, Defense Criminal Investigative Service, Non-fungible token, Law enforcement, Environment, Australian Taxation Office, IRS-CI, RCMP, COVID-19, Financial intelligence, Ecosystem, US Cyber Challenge, IRS Criminal Investigation, Charles Ponzi, J5, Revenue, AUSTRAC, Financial crime, CRA, FIOD, Cryptocurrency, Drug

This year's iteration of the Challenge focused on data mining and financial reporting relating to crypto-assets and technology enabled financial threats.

Key Points: 
  • This year's iteration of the Challenge focused on data mining and financial reporting relating to crypto-assets and technology enabled financial threats.
  • This is the first Challenge where Financial Intelligence Units (FIUs) from each J5 country participated.
  • Collectively, the J5 member countries, FIUs, and blockchain analysis companies scoured their respective data holdings to identify the most promising cryptocurrency leads related to tax evasion and money laundering.
  • The J5 works together to gather information, share intelligence and conduct coordinated operations against transnational financial crimes.

Universities and their students are vulnerable to money laundering – new research

Retrieved on: 
Tuesday, September 5, 2023
Islamic State, National, NCA, Crime, Terrorism, Friends, Terrorism Act 2000, University, Research, Financial intelligence, Person, Proceeds of Crime Act 2002, Government, Student, Risk, Terror, Corruption, Cryptocurrency, Private investigator

Money launderers often target financial institutions, but they are also increasingly targeting lesser regulated or unregulated sectors, such as universities.

Key Points: 
  • Money launderers often target financial institutions, but they are also increasingly targeting lesser regulated or unregulated sectors, such as universities.
  • Our research has focused on how universities apply anti-money laundering legislation, as well as their response to identified threats.
  • We have found that universities, their employees and students are vulnerable to threats from money launderers because universities are not explicitly included within the UK’s money laundering, terrorist financing and transfer of funds regulations.
  • Their status makes them vulnerable to corruption and involvement in money laundering schemes.

What we found

    • Overall, we found there is a disparity among universities regarding the implementation of anti-money laundering legislation.
    • A significant minority of universities are failing to provide staff and students with guidance on money laundering and terrorism financing risks.
    • For example, three universities received more than £1 million in cash between 2019 and 2020, for tuition fees and accommodation.
    • And allowing cash payments for accommodation and tuition fees should be prohibited, or at least severely restricted.

Savory and Partners: What does the future hold for Citizenship by Investment?

Retrieved on: 
Saturday, September 2, 2023
3rd millennium, Pressure, Communication, WhatsApp, CIP, Diplomacy, Partner, Electronic visa, Financial intelligence, Veteran, Egmont Group of Financial Intelligence Units, Person, Government, ETA, UK electronic travel authorisation, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Investment, Drug, Private investigator, Cryptocurrency, Management, Security (finance), Manufacturing, EU, Russians

Additional checks: Each jurisdiction will run checks on each application with the Financial Intelligence Unit of its respective country.

Key Points: 
  • Additional checks: Each jurisdiction will run checks on each application with the Financial Intelligence Unit of its respective country.
  • The guidelines aim to increase the efficacy of the program's due diligence process while also streamlining communication between the government, agents, and investors.
  • It is a complex matter that takes into account the future value of money, inflation, and currency fluctuation, among other factors.
  • Savory & Partners' Founder and CEO Jeremy Savory shares his views on recent developments in the Caribbean programs and the future of the Citizenship by Investment industry.

Savory and Partners: What does the future hold for Citizenship by Investment?

Retrieved on: 
Saturday, September 2, 2023
3rd millennium, Pressure, Communication, WhatsApp, CIP, Diplomacy, Partner, Electronic visa, Financial intelligence, Veteran, Egmont Group of Financial Intelligence Units, Person, Government, ETA, UK electronic travel authorisation, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Investment, Drug, Private investigator, Cryptocurrency, Management, Security (finance), Manufacturing, EU, Russians

Additional checks: Each jurisdiction will run checks on each application with the Financial Intelligence Unit of its respective country.

Key Points: 
  • Additional checks: Each jurisdiction will run checks on each application with the Financial Intelligence Unit of its respective country.
  • The guidelines aim to increase the efficacy of the program's due diligence process while also streamlining communication between the government, agents, and investors.
  • It is a complex matter that takes into account the future value of money, inflation, and currency fluctuation, among other factors.
  • Savory & Partners' Founder and CEO Jeremy Savory shares his views on recent developments in the Caribbean programs and the future of the Citizenship by Investment industry.

FINRA Names Bill St. Louis as New Head of Enforcement

Retrieved on: 
Monday, August 21, 2023
Legal, Finance, Consulting, Fintech, Banking, Law Enforcement, Emergency Services, Accounting, Public Policy, Government, Professional Services, Baruch College, Suffolk University Law School, Senior, Head, Multimedia, Financial intelligence, Financial Intelligence Unit (India), New York University School of Law, NCFC, Insurance Fraud Enforcement Department, FINRA, Region, Fraud, Safety, Management, Cryptocurrency, Enforcement

FINRA announced today that it has appointed Bill St. Louis as Head of Enforcement, effective immediately.

Key Points: 
  • FINRA announced today that it has appointed Bill St. Louis as Head of Enforcement, effective immediately.
  • St. Louis, an Executive Vice President, was most recently head of FINRA’s National Cause and Financial Crimes Detection Program (NCFC).
  • St. Louis will be responsible for the management of approximately 350 enforcement staff in 11 offices across the United States and will report directly to FINRA CEO Robert Cook .
  • Christopher J. Kelly , Senior Vice President and Deputy Head of Enforcement, served as Acting Head of Enforcement since February 2023, when Jessica Hopper departed FINRA.

Onmeta Becomes the First Fiat On-Ramp Solution in India to Register with FIU, Leading the Way in Regulatory Compliance

Retrieved on: 
Wednesday, July 26, 2023
Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India, Policy, PMLA, Financial intelligence, Financial Intelligence Unit (India), Government, AML, Trust, FIU, Finance minister, Organizational founder, Ecosystem, VDA, Environment, KYC, Cryptocurrency

Bengaluru, India--(Newsfile Corp. - July 26, 2023) - Onmeta, India's leading fiat on-ramp & off-ramp solution provider, has become the first such solution in India to register with the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) of the Finance Ministry of the Government of India.

Key Points: 
  • Bengaluru, India--(Newsfile Corp. - July 26, 2023) - Onmeta, India's leading fiat on-ramp & off-ramp solution provider, has become the first such solution in India to register with the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) of the Finance Ministry of the Government of India.
  • As mandated by the amendments to the PMLA, Onmeta already has a robust yet breezy one-time KYC process.
  • It has also established a comprehensive AML policy including Sanctions screening that identifies and reports suspicious transactions promptly and proactively to the FIU.
  • This latest development should go a long way in instilling confidence in the potential of the Indian crypto ecosystem and encourage more companies to build for India.

St Kitts and Nevis introduces mandatory interviews to confirm its status as the best regulated Citizenship by Investment Programme in the Caribbean

Retrieved on: 
Wednesday, July 19, 2023
Dominica citizenship by investment programme, EU, Government Investment Unit of Indonesia, Civil service commission, Antigua and Barbuda, Policy, Risk management, Financial intelligence, Egmont Group of Financial Intelligence Units, Person, CIU, Treasury, Federation, CBI, European, United Kingdom, Ecosystem, Volition, Investment, Saint Lucia, European Commission, Safety, Cryptocurrency, Private investigator, Russians, Basseterre

That meeting was convened to discuss and agree on common ways to deal with threats to international communities in the investment migration ecosystem.

Key Points: 
  • That meeting was convened to discuss and agree on common ways to deal with threats to international communities in the investment migration ecosystem.
  • The five Caribbean participating governments are Antigua & Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts and Nevis and Saint Lucia.
  • Head of St Kitts and Nevis’ Citizenship by Investment Unit, Michael Martin, commented that “St Kitts and Nevis remains committed to cooperating with our international stakeholders and takes the safety and integrity of our Citizenship by Investment Programme extremely seriously.”
    Due diligence and risk mitigation remain a very important aspect of how St Kitts and Nevis approaches its CBI programme.
  • St Kitts and Nevis boasts the oldest CBI programme in the Caribbean, established in 1984, and continues to be a firm favourite among international investors across the world.

The Commonwealth of Dominica adds vital layer to its CBI processing, requires all applicants to conduct interviews

Retrieved on: 
Friday, July 14, 2023
Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States, Employment, Interview, Organization, Dominica citizenship by investment programme, Bank statement, Unitary state, Risk management, Financial intelligence, Egmont Group of Financial Intelligence Units, Government, Person, Treasury, Spokane Public Facilities District, Round Table, CBI, Investment, European, United Kingdom, Climate, Ageing, Commonwealth, Pierre, Saint Lucia, Cryptocurrency, Private investigator, Audit, Russians

The US-Caribbean Roundtable deliberated the challenges faced by Caribbean CBI programmes and discussed opportunities that would enable the programmes to thrive.

Key Points: 
  • The US-Caribbean Roundtable deliberated the challenges faced by Caribbean CBI programmes and discussed opportunities that would enable the programmes to thrive.
  • One of the outcomes of the session was that all Caribbean CBI nations agreed to start conducting virtual or in-person interviews with each applicant.
  • In Dominica for example, funds from the CBI programme have been used to build climate resilient infrastructure, enhance public facilities and diversify the economy.
  • Interviews: Conduct interviews with applicants, whether virtual or in person.

Caribbean CBI countries rank high once again in 2023 World Citizenship Report: CS Global Partners

Retrieved on: 
Friday, June 9, 2023
Financial independence, Financial intelligence, Private sector, Antigua and Barbuda, OECD, Safety, Organization, Visa, Loss of citizenship, Quality, Assistant, Government, CIU, CARICOM, Security, Treasury, Report, CBI, Government Investment Unit of Indonesia, Quality of life, Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation, Introduction, Commonwealth, Communes of Burundi, Investment, Saint Lucia, Private investigator, Creative industries, Renewable energy, Drug

London, June 09, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Caribbean nations with Citizenship by Investment schemes ranked in the top 30 per cent of this year’s World Citizenship Report .

Key Points: 
  • London, June 09, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Caribbean nations with Citizenship by Investment schemes ranked in the top 30 per cent of this year’s World Citizenship Report .
  • The Caribbean is considered the cradle of investment immigration due to the high concentration of countries that offer CBI programmes in the region.
  • Caribbean nations are becoming investment hubs in the global arena, offering attractions such as safety, lucrative financial diversification options and idyllic lifestyles that make them desirable places to take up second citizenship.
  • The World Citizenship Report is published by CS Global Partners, a leading investment migration advisory firm.

AI against money laundering

Retrieved on: 
Monday, May 8, 2023
Paulinum (University of Leipzig), University, Catalog, German, Research, Financial intelligence, Federal Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation, Financial Intelligence Unit (India), Centre for Secure Information Technologies, Malefiz, Machine learning, FIU, Fraunhofer Society, Artificial intelligence, Technical University of Berlin, AI, Fraunhofer, Berlin, Identification, Education, Conspicuous consumption, Medical device

DARMSTADT, Germany, May 8, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- In the fight against money laundering, established software-based detection methods work imprecisely and often raise false alarms. Consequently, investigating authorities are frequently overburdened because they must follow up on every suspicion. In the new research project MaLeFiz (Machine Learning for the Identification of Conspicuous Financial Transactions), researchers are now working on a solution that uses machine learning – an artificial intelligence technique – to improve the search for illegal money flows and make it more precise so that fewer false alarms are generated. In addition, the project partners are developing minimum requirements and control mechanisms for AI solutions used in the financial industry. Furthermore, the results of the AI are to be made traceable. Project partners are Deloitte GmbH, the Fraunhofer Institute for Secure Information Technology SIT, the Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, the University of Leipzig as well as the Center for Technology and Society at TU Berlin. The MaLeFiz project is funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research and will run for three years. Fraunhofer SIT is leading the project and is responsible for the development of the AI-based tool. For more information, visit www.sit.fraunhofer.de/en/malefiz.

Key Points: 
  • DARMSTADT, Germany, May 8, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- In the fight against money laundering, established software-based detection methods work imprecisely and often raise false alarms.
  • In addition, the project partners are developing minimum requirements and control mechanisms for AI solutions used in the financial industry.
  • The analysis of financial transactions is an important component in the fight against money laundering.
  • For example, the decisions of an AI must be comprehensible: The AI should not be a "black box" and simply spit out a list of suspicious cases.