Most
countries have only one such system, the repository of data
regarding all banking (and most non-banking) transactions in the
country. Yet, even this is a partial solution. Most national systems
maintain records for 6-12 months, private settlement and clearing
systems for even less.
Yet, the crux of the problem is not the Hawala or the Hawaladars.
The corrupt and inept governments of Asia are to blame for not
regulating their banking systems, for over-regulating everything
else, for not fostering competition, for throwing public money at
bad debts and at worse borrowers, for over-taxing, for robbing
people of their life savings through capital controls, for tearing
at the delicate fabric of trust between customer and bank (Pakistan,
for instance, froze all foreign exchange accounts two years ago).
Perhaps if Asia had reasonably expedient, reasonably priced,
reasonably regulated, user-friendly banks - Osama bin Laden would
have found it impossible to finance his mischief so invisibly.
Straf - Corruption in Central and Eastern Europe
The three policemen barked "straf", "straf" in unison. It was a
Russianized version of the German word for "fine" and a euphemism
for bribe. I and my fianc?e were stranded in an empty ally at the
heart of Moscow, physically encircled by these young bullies, an
ominous propinquity.
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