By Monica Ramirez Chimal
Author & Partner of Asserto RSC
2017 Compliance & Ethics Institute Session 304
Many people are misunderstanding money laundering. They think it´s only trigger is drug trafficking and only done in the financial sector. I guess those news stories about banks that used to launder money makes it difficult to understand anything else.
Money laundering is to give legality to money that comes from illicit activities. Those illicit activities are diverse, all of which will be explained in detail. It has also expanded to other sectors than just the financial one. Therefore, in some countries, jewelry, trade-based casinos, and some other industries are included in regulation.
There are also several differences between money laundering and terrorist financing. The terrorist uses the same method as those who launder money because they are effective! Every case of money laundering is unique and, as it will be shown in my Compliance & Ethics Institute session, creativity is the key.
Both are growing faster becoming an international threat. It is estimated that the money laundered yearly is between 2-3 trillions of dollars (more than the gross domestic product of the United States!) and last year the number of terrorist attacks that have occurred were over 1,807 resulting in more than 15,937 fatalities.
Did you know that one of the sources to finance terrorism and trigger for money laundering is counterfeit goods? Due to the actions of law enforcement, the criminal is making money laundering more complex; they are looking for those countries, industries, companies and persons which can help them to launder lots of money at a low cost in a very quick time.
How do you protect yourself and the company you work for? It is not something you have to create and it is not difficult to implement. The answer is to know the operation; I bet your company is already using certain controls needed to minimize the risk.
Knowing your customer is one of the several key elements, among training, that’s why I am counting on your presence at my session.
Money laundering is not an isolated event occurring in a specific place. It’s something that affects us all; something that is generating insecurity, violence and destroying companies. No crime is perfect, and we should identify it before it’s too late…