On Friday 29th April 2022, we had the opportunity to talk with David Lewis during the International Risk Congress at the headquarters of Euroclear in Brussels. David Lewis is Managing Director and Global Head of Anti-Money Laundering (AML) advisory Forensic Investigations and Intelligence practice at Kroll UK. David Lewis talked with presenter Dina-Perla Portnaar on how he leverages extensive global experience on a daily basis, helping governments, supervisors and regulated firms to combat money laundering effectively.

According to David Lewis, the biggest risks can be found in the financial capitals, New York and London. He also talked about the unprecedented sanctions against Russia and the problems of finding the assets related to shell companies. Recovering any valuables is very difficult, he said. He also encourages investigative journalism as a very valuable asset in combating Financial Economic Crime. Continue reading…

Italian and Austrian authorities have dismantled a massive fraud scheme set up by a criminal network that used Italian companies to simulate business leases and false tax credits. The perpetrators deprived the Italian authorities of at least EUR 440 million. With the help of Eurojust, approximately 90% of the proceeds have been recovered and 12 suspects have been arrested. Continue reading…

YouControl is a Ukrainian IT company, developing open data services since 2014 and a same-name analytical system for analysing companies’ and individuals’ activities (https://youcontrol.com.ua/en/). They have many years of successful experience in creating AML and KYC systems used by international companies. The company is a member of 15 business associations, such as the European Business Association, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and many others. Furthermore, YouControl is trusted by the National Bank of Ukraine, the State Financial Monitoring Service of Ukraine, National Agency on Corruption Prevention (NACP), and many other government regulators. Continue reading…

Authorities from France, Germany and Luxemburg carried out extensive measures to freeze EUR 120 million worth of assets linked to the investigation of a money laundering case in Lebanon, during an action day on 25 March. Five properties in Germany and France were seized as well as several bank accounts. Eurojust supported the judicial cooperation by setting up a joint investigation team (JIT) and organising three coordination meetings.

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Crypto-asset markets are fast evolving and could reach a point where they represent a threat to global financial stability due to their scale, structural vulnerabilities and increasing interconnectedness with the traditional financial system. This is the Financial Stability Board’s (FSB’s) updated assessment of risks to financial stability from crypto-assets, published on February 16th. The report examines developments and associated vulnerabilities relating to three segments of crypto-asset markets: unbacked crypto-assets (such as Bitcoin); stablecoins; and decentralised finance (DeFi) and crypto-asset trading platforms. It notes the close, complex and constantly evolving interrelationship between these three segments, which need to be considered holistically when assessing related financial stability risks. Continue reading…

The European Compliance Center together with media partner Risk & Compliance Platform Europe, is pleased to present the launch of a new initiative, the Compliance Cafe. The Compliance Cafe is a series of monthly webinars with outstanding compliance professionals. The aim of these online sessions is to encourage interaction between compliance professionals from different countries to discuss current risk and compliance topics, such as money laundering and de-risking. The first Compliance Cafe webinar was held on January 26, 2022, on the topic of the peculiarities of the transnational fight against illicit money flows – regulations, institutions, and effectiveness. Continue reading…

During an action day, 11 suspects were arrested in Romania, Belgium and Austria, accused of stealing at least EUR 420 000 using cloned fuel cards in Belgium. In Romania, a total of 115 law enforcement officers from different units were deployed, including those specialising in combating organised crime. Eurojust supported the investigation led by Belgian authorities. The perpetrators allegedly used various skimming techniques to obtain the electronic data contained on the magnetic stripe of the original fuel cards and their PIN codes. With these electronic data, they cloned fuel cards that, with the use of the PIN code, allowed them to buy fuel and to upload money to the Belgian road-toll-reporting device without the intention of ever paying these amounts. Continue reading…

Eurojust supported the Romanian and Italian authorities in an investigation that concluded with the indictment of five Italian citizens accused of defrauding the EU of at least EUR 800 000 worth of EU agricultural funds. The fraudsters and four companies they set up first face trial in Romania. A trial for self money laundering will take place in Italy at a later date. Judicial authorities from Romania and Italy met yesterday in Enna, Italy, to evaluate the joint investigation team (JIT) that unveiled the fraud. The case was brought to Eurojust by the Romanian authorities in 2019. Continue reading…

The Financial Conduct Authority has fined Barclays Bank Plc (Barclays) £783,800 for oversight failings in its relationship with collapsed payments firm Premier FX. Barclays was Premier FX’s sole banker in the UK. The financial penalty takes into account that Barclays has agreed voluntarily to cover the losses of Premier FX customers whose claims have been accepted by Premier FX’s liquidators. Following the distribution by the liquidator amounting to 9p for every £1 lost, Barclays’ voluntary payment of £10,076,943.75 will make up the difference, meaning all 167 customers of Premier FX with accepted claims will have 100% of their money returned. The voluntary payment will be distributed to these customers by the liquidators by the end of March 2022. Continue reading…

by Dan Mihai

A leak inside the Swiss banking company Credit Suisse revealed the details of the accounts of more than 30,000 customers worldwide. These accounts hold a total of over 100 billion Swiss francs (€ 80 billion), some of which comes from illicit sources such as drug trafficking, human trafficking, money laundering and corruption. Thus, Credit Suisse is embroiled in a new controversy over its unethical discretionary policies and unclear customer selection and money-making procedures. Continue reading…