The distinction
between off-shore and on-shore will vanish. Of the FATF's "name and
shame" blacklist of 19 "black holes" (poorly regulated territories,
including Israel, Indonesia, and Russia) - 11 have substantially
revamped their banking laws and financial regulators. Coupled with
the tightening of US, UK, and EU laws and the wider interpretation
of money laundering to include political corruption, bribery, and
embezzlement - this would make life a lot more difficult for venal
politicians and major tax evaders. The likes of Sani Abacha (late
President of Nigeria), Ferdinand Marcos (late President of the
Philippines), Vladimiro Montesinos (former, now standing trial,
chief of the intelligence services of Peru), or Raul Salinas (the
brother of Mexico's President) - would have found it impossible to
loot their countries to the same disgraceful extent in today's
financial environment. And Osama bin Laden would not have been able
to wire funds to US accounts from the Sudanese Al Shamal Bank, the
"correspondent" of 33 American banks.
Quo Vadis, Money Laundering?
Crime is resilient and fast adapting to new realities. Organized
crime is in the process of establishing an alternative banking
system, only tangentially connected to the West's, in the fringes,
and by proxy.
This is done by purchasing defunct banks or banking licences in
territories with lax regulation, cash economies, corrupt
politicians, no tax collection, but reasonable infrastructure.
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