Category: Anti money laundering

Panama and Colombia to negotiate tax information-sharing deal

(Reuters) – Panama and Colombia will negotiate a financial information-sharing deal, ending a stand-off over Colombia’s classification of the Central American country as a tax haven and removing it from that status, Colombia’s president said on Tuesday. The Colombian government is trying to curb tax evasion and two weeks ago… – Continue reading

Four foreign banks ordered to tighten anti-laundering efforts

The financial regulator said on Tuesday that it has ordered four foreign banks operating in Korea to strengthen their anti-money laundering protections. The Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) inspected some 60 local and foreign banks to check whether they are equipped with relevant safeguards. Among them were the Seoul branches of… – Continue reading

US-driven quest against money laundering: Standard Chartered to close thousands of UAE accounts

Standard Chartered has notified thousands of UAE small and medium enterprise customers it is closing their accounts as it responds to pressure from US regulators to cut its risks following an anti-money laundering settlement. “We regret to notify you that Standard Chartered Bank will no longer be able to provide… – Continue reading

Luxembourg: Update Of The OECD Model Tax Convention

On July 15th 2014, the OECD published its 2014 update of the Model Tax Convention (“2014 OECD Update”). This update is the outcome of the work accomplished between 2010 and the end of 2013. It does not however take into account the OECD conclusions of the “Action Plan on Base… – Continue reading

Dirty money: 19 UK firms alleged ‘complicit’ in $20bn laundering scam

Some 19 British firms are at the center of an investigation into in a mammoth global money-laundering operation. The scheme was allegedly contrived to make $20bn (£12.5bn) worth of ill-gotten gains appear legitimate. The illicit funds are thought to have originated from criminal gangs and corrupt officials across the globe,… – Continue reading

Isle of Man: Crypto-Currencies And The Isle Of Man

The Isle of Man is showing great enthusiasm for crypto-currencies – from the landlord at a popular Douglas drinking hole to the Lieutenant Governor, everyone is talking about digital currency and the potentially huge benefits to the Island. The Isle of Man Financial Supervision Commission (FSC) has announced plans to… – Continue reading

Failed property scheme linked to tax haven firm

A failed property development is linked to a tax haven company that triggered an alleged money laundering probe into a wealthy businessman. Albany Heights, more than 400 homes proposed to be built on Auckland’s North Shore, was marketed as an “investors’ dream” but companies connected to the project collapsed with… – Continue reading

Top House lawmakers question proposed waiver for Credit Suisse

Three House Democrats are urging the Labor Department to reconsider its proposed waiver of sanctions on Credit Suisse following its guilty plea over tax evasion charges. Reps. Maxine Waters (Calif.), ranking member of the Financial Services Committee, George Miller (Calif.), ranking member of the Education and the Workforce Committee and… – Continue reading

Espírito Santo Financial to File for Bankruptcy

LONDON – The Espírito Santo Financial Group, which at one point held about 25 percent of the bailed-out Portuguese lender Banco Espírito Santo, said on Thursday that it would file for bankruptcy after it was denied creditor protection by a Luxembourg court last week. Espírito Santo Financial is part of… – Continue reading

Swiss Said to Send Data on UBS French Client Accounts

UBS AG (UBSN), the Swiss bank facing French allegations of helping clients evade taxes, has handed over details on about 100 accounts, according to a person with knowledge of the matter. Swiss authorities at the start of the year notified UBS of a request from France for information on 300… – Continue reading

Lukoil Refinery in Romania Closed over Tax Evasion, Money Laundering Probe

Romanian authorities have ordered the closure of Lukoil’s Petrotel refinery in Ploiesti, Romania. Oleg Malginov, Russia’s Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Romania, announced that the oil refinery had been closed sue to an investigation for tax evasion and money laundering. Malginov, as cited by ITAR-TASS, pointed out that the halt… – Continue reading

Lukoil Refinery in Romania Closed over Tax Evasion, Money Laundering Probe

Romanian authorities have ordered the closure of Lukoil’s Petrotel refinery in Ploiesti, Romania. Oleg Malginov, Russia’s Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Romania, announced that the oil refinery had been closed sue to an investigation for tax evasion and money laundering. Malginov, as cited by ITAR-TASS, pointed out that the halt… – Continue reading

Prosecutors investigate EUR 200 mln tax evasion & money laundry case at Lukoil’s Romanian refinery

Romanian prosecutors from the Ploiesti Court of Appeal Prosecutor’s Office conducted several searches at the Petrotel refinery in Ploiesti, which is owned by Russian group Lukoil. The searches are part of a tax evasion and money laundering case in which the damage to the state is about EUR 200 million,… – Continue reading

Bulgarian prosecutors say Liechtenstein investigating Corpbank

(Reuters) – Liechtenstein is investigating the main owner of Bulgaria’s Corporate Commercial Bank (Corpbank), Tsvetan Vassilev, and have asked for information about him, Bulgarian prosecutors said on Tuesday. Corpbank was hit by a run on deposits in June, triggering Bulgaria’s worst financial crisis since the 1990s. Vassilev was charged with… – Continue reading

GoCoin CEO Steve Beauregard: “The Isle of Man Offers Many Competitive Advantages Over the US, UK, Luxembourg and Singapore”

Nearly 200 entrepreneurs, enthusiasts, private sector representatives and governmental officials were convened last week for the Crypto Valley Summit 2014 in the Isle of Man to share their points of views on numerous topics involving digital currencies and discuss the opportunities and challenges that is facing the industry. The two-day… – Continue reading

Government seeks banking information on 97 cases from Mauritius in one year

PORT LOUIS: Mauritius has provided details on majority of information requests received from Indian authorities in the last one year, according to a government official. India has concerns that Mauritius, which is one of the top sources of foreign direct investments into the country, is being used for round-tripping of… – Continue reading

Belize brokers arrested after 2-year FBI stock manipulation probe

After an almost two year investigation into offshore stock entities in Belize, things moved quickly on Sept. 9. The indictment in Brooklyn was unsealed and at 11:45 a.m. Robert Bandfield was arrested in Miami on stock fraud charges. By 1 p.m., FBI agents and Belize police were on the fourth… – Continue reading

FIFA panel member is stood down during Cayman Islands corruption probe

A member of FIFA’s financial watchdog panel has been temporarily suspended while implicated in the Cayman Islands corruption investigation. Canover Watson was questioned last month by police anti-corruption and financial crime units in his native Cayman Islands on suspicion of corruption and money-laundering. He denies wrongdoing. FIFA said audit committee chairman… – Continue reading

British Virgin Islands suffers amid push against money laundering

High quality global journalism requires investment. Please share this article with others using the link below, do not cut & paste the article. See our Ts&Cs and Copyright Policy for more detail. Email ftsales.support@ft.com to buy additional rights. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/3fbed922-3d51-11e4-871d-00144feabdc0.html#ixzz3Eo63WbfR The British Virgin Islands has long attracted Chinese companies looking to… – Continue reading

Illicit financial flows curtail economic growth

ALTHOUGH Finance minister Patrick Chinamasa’s 2014 Fiscal Policy Review statement announced last week seeks to widen government’s revenue inflows, analysts contend that there is need to seriously curb illicit financial flows (IFFs) from Zimbabwe if the economy is to experience the anticipated growth. Illicit financial flows through tax evasion, bribery,… – Continue reading

U.S. tax evasion and money-laundering sting nabs Canadians

A contingent of so-called “corrupt clients” from Canada have been caught in the net of a massive fraud investigation by the FBI and the U.S. Attorney, a source close to the investigation told CBC. CBC News reported Wednesday that two Canadians, along with four others, were indicted in the U.S…. – Continue reading

UBS Appeals $1.4 Billion Bail in French Tax Evasion Probe

UBS AG (UBSN) asked a Paris appeals court to overturn a $1.4 billion bail looming over the Swiss bank as France steps up a two-year-old tax evasion probe. The hearing dragged on for nearly three hours as the parties argued the case. The court said it would decide on the… – Continue reading

Six Corporate Executives and Six Corporate Entities Indicted for Orchestrating a $500 Million Offshore Asset Protection, Securities Fraud, and Money Laundering Scheme Defendants Created Three Brokerage Firms in Belize to Assist U.S. Citizens in Fraudulent Manipulation Schemes of Publicly Traded Companies, Including Cannabis-Rx Inc. (CANA)]

A multi-count indictment was unsealed this morning in federal court in Brooklyn, New York, against six individual defendants: Robert Bandfield, a U.S. citizen; Andrew Godfrey, a citizen of Belize; Kelvin Leach, a citizen of the Bahamas; Rohn Knowles, a citizen of the Bahamas; Brian De Wit, a citizen of Canada;… – Continue reading

SEC charges Belize ‘neighbors’ of summer market sensation Cynk

On Tuesday, the SEC and the Justice Department charged several companies claiming to be located on the same floor of an office building in Belize City with fraud and conspiracy. We may not have heard the last from Cynk Technology. On Tuesday, the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Department… – Continue reading

Mauritius: The Privy Council Interprets Key Provisions Of Mauritian Anti-Money Laundering Legislation

In Beezadhur v The Independent Commission against Corruption and anor [2014] UKPC 27, the Privy Council dismissed an appeal by a retired nurse who was charged with and found guilty by the Intermediate Court of Mauritius of five offences under sections 5(1) and 8 of the Financial and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2002… – Continue reading

Tax Fugitives Brought To Justice By HMRC

The organisation hails the capture of five more of its most wanted as “excellent news for all honest taxpayers”. Five of the UK’s top tax fugitives have been brought back to the UK to face justice following a global HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) initiative, the organisation has said. HMRC… – Continue reading

European states may bring in their own version of FATCA

BEIRUT: Some bankers have said that European states are expected to follow the example of the United States and ask their citizens abroad to disclose their bank accounts to European financial authorities in a bid to combat tax evasion. “It’s not official yet but we expect some European countries to adopt similar… – Continue reading

Fake reception prompts probe

A political candidate has sparked the Reserve Bank and the Financial Markets Authority to visit a foreign-owned company offering “secret” offshore accounts. Grace Haden, an independent standing for election in Epsom, raised concerns with the regulators about Breder Suasso, which is referred to on overseas websites as a New Zealand… – Continue reading

Cayman included on FCA high-risk list

The Cayman Islands, an important international business competitor for Bermuda, is expressing “consternation” that they have been included on a new list of high risk jurisdictions for financial crime. There are a total of 95 countries listed including Brazil, Afghanistan, Cuba, Russia, China, Iraq, the Republic of Congo and Jamaica…. – Continue reading

Wolters Kluwer Financial Services Identifies Data Collection and Reporting Requirements to Assist with FATCA Compliance

U.S.-China Agreement Requires Financial Institutions to  Increase Transparency and Enhance Reporting  Wolters Kluwer Financial Services recommends that financial institutions in China should take steps toward enhancing their data and reporting capabilities on financial accounts held by U.S. taxpayers in China as part of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act. This recommendation… – Continue reading

Black money: 600 Indian accounts under probe by Central Economic Intelligence Bureau

The CEIB has “disseminated” the data of these 600 cases to the Income Tax dept, Enforcement Directorate (ED) etc. In another instance of suspected black money stashed by Indians abroad, investigative agencies are probing a set of 600 new names and identities which have been provided to India by a… – Continue reading

COMMENT: THE FUTURE FOR OFFSHORE

Since the global financial crisis struck in 2008, offshore financial centres (OFCs) have come under sustained attack. As the world’s leading economies struggled to balance their books in the face of massive declines in tax revenue, the lowest fruit was seen to be hanging from the offshore tree. Estimates of… – Continue reading

India to Switzerland: Join group on illegal money information sharing

New Delhi: To address the problem of illegal money stashed abroad, India has asked Switzerland to join a ‘early adopter group’ mandating an automatic exchange of information amongst the countries involved in the group, Parliament was informed on Tuesday. “The finance minister has written a letter to the Swiss finance… – Continue reading

Africans call on rich nations to crack down on money laundering in new drive against illicit flows

WASHINGTON (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – The world’s richest nations must toughen their laws against money laundering, tax havens and tax evasion if a global drive against corruption and illicit finance is to deliver results, senior African diplomats said on Thursday. “There are two sides to this coin. If there were… – Continue reading

Regulated entities told: Observe new anti-money laundering strictures

INSURANCE Commissioner Emmanuel F. Dooc has ordered insurance companies to participate in the government’s information gathering to determine the country’s risks of involvement in money laundering and terrorism financing activities. Dooc issued Circular Letter 2014-33 requiring insurance companies, preneed companies and mutual benefit associations to submit information that will help determine… – Continue reading

Alleged drug kingpin – who operates Taos plumbing firm – indicted on tax evasion charges

TAOS – An alleged cocaine distribution ring leader in the  Southwest and his family have been indicted on several tax evasion, tax fraud, conspiracy and money laundering charges. A Taos County Grand Jury on Thursday returned indictments against alleged drug kingpin Ismael Adame, 56; his wife, Angela Adame, 56; and… – Continue reading

Ongoing searches at several companies in Romania in tax evasion case, damage estimated at EUR 1.5 mln

The Bucharest police conduct on Tuesday morning (July 8) 26 searches in the Romanian capital and Ilfov county, to dismantle a group specializing in tax evasion and money laundering. The damage in this case is estimated at EUR 1.5 million, according to a statement of the General Directorate of Bucharest… – Continue reading

Ongoing searches at dozens Romanian clinics in EUR 68 mln tax evasion and money laundering case

The Romanian police conducted on Friday morning (July 4) 76 searches in Bucharest and six counties, at dozens of clinics suspected of tax evasion and money laundering through illegal VAT refunds via ghost companies, reports local Mediafax. The damage in this case is estimated at EUR 68 million. The police… – Continue reading

Belgium Tax, Indonesia Islamic Banking, BofA: Compliance

Marcel Bruehwiler, chief executive officer of UBS AG (UBSN)’s Belgium unit, was charged in Brussels as part of a probe into a multibillion-euro tax fraud, accelerating the latest tax-evasion inquiry facing the Swiss bank. Bruehwiler was charged with criminal organization, money laundering, illegal practice of the profession of financial intermediary… – Continue reading

Barrister calls for full inquiry into ATO’s ‘Keystone cops’

A decision to drop tax and money laundering charges against three high-profile Sydney businessmen is ”another humiliating defeat for the Project Wickenby Keystone Cops”, according to a lawyer close to the trio. Charges attracting jail of up to 25 years, laid against former CVC Limited chairman Vanda Gould, former Sunland… – Continue reading

Charges over Cayman Islands tax haven dropped

Tax avoidance and money laundering charges against former CVC Limited chairman Vanda Gould, former Sunland chairman John Leaver and Swiss resident Peter Borgas have been dropped. The trio were arrested by Federal Police in October on allegations they used a complex network of companies in tax havens to avoid millions… – Continue reading

Centre gives names of all account holders in Liechtenstein Bank to Supreme Court

NEW DELHI: After resisting for more than three years, the Centre on Tuesday revealed names of 18 people in the Supreme Court who allegedly stashed black money with LST bank in Liechtenstein and against whom prosecution have been launched by the income tax department. Centre also placed in a sealed… – Continue reading

Gibraltar bank warns of new regulatory enforcement action, fines over money laundering

Gibraltar Private Bank & Trust Co. warned its shareholders that federal regulators are seeking to hit the bank with a new enforcement action and civil monetary penalties, including against individual board members. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the U.S. Department of the Treasury are pursing these harsh civil measures because they’ve… – Continue reading