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U.S. authorities and Guatemalan justice officials are strengthening cooperation aimed at disrupting the financial networks supporting transnational cartel activity, with investigations expected to focus on fraud, bulk cash movements, trade-based money laundering, cryptocurrency and other methods used to move illicit proceeds across borders. U.S. Attorney Ryan Raybould and Criminal Chief Fabio Leonardi of the Northern District of Texas travelled to Guatemala during the week of

The Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates has prohibited all branches of Bank Melli Iran operating in the UAE from conducting financial transactions to and from Iran following regulatory examinations that identified violations of UAE laws, regulations and supervisory requirements. The measure was announced on 23 September 2026 by the Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE). The prohibition applies specifically to financial transactions between the UAE branches of Bank Melli Iran a

Tabcorp VIC Pty Ltd has been fined AU$350,000 by the Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission (VGCCC) for failing to implement mandatory multi-factor authentication controls on customer wagering accounts within the required timeframe. The disciplinary action relates to breaches of four security requirements between January 30 and June 23, 2025. The fine was imposed following a decision dated September 21, 2026. The VGCCC found that Tabcorp had contravened technical st

The Curaçao Gaming Authority (CGA) has confirmed that its online gaming licensing portal was accessed without authorisation for approximately nine months through an account registered using a false identity. The regulator said the unauthorised access began in December 2025 and continued until it was identified and terminated in September 2026. The access was obtained through the customer-facing section of the CGA's licensing portal. According to the regulator, the account was

A Russian financial technology group known as A7 allegedly moved more than $6.9 billion through the international banking system using front companies, forged commercial documents and other methods designed to conceal the nature and origin of transactions, according to an investigation based on hundreds of thousands of leaked internal files. The investigation concerns A7, a cross-border payments business established in late 2024 with backing from Russian state-owned Promsvyaz

Spain has allowed a US request to extradite American national James Cox Chambers to proceed to judicial review, following his arrest in Ibiza in July 2026. The decision does not constitute approval of his extradition. The case will now be considered by Spain’s Audiencia Nacional before the Spanish government makes a final determination. Chambers, 41, was arrested on 10 July while visiting Ibiza and remains in pre-trial detention in Madrid. He is a US citizen and has been desc

Financial firms in the United Kingdom closed 238,396 customer accounts linked to suspected money mule activity in 2025, according to a review published by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) on 23 September 2026. The regulator’s findings also show that fraud proceeds commonly pass through multiple mule accounts before being withdrawn or otherwise converted into usable funds. The figures were collected through a survey of 35 financial services firms, including retail banks,

The Dutch Gambling Authority (Kansspelautoriteit, KSA) has issued the first eight follow-up licences to online gambling operators, allowing them to continue operating in the Netherlands for another five years. The licences will run from October 1, 2026 until September 30, 2031, following the expiry of the first licences issued when the Dutch online gambling market was opened in 2021. The eight operators receiving follow-up licences are TOTO Online B.V., operating TOTO and Win

Barbados is preparing to strengthen the practical application of its anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing framework ahead of its fifth international mutual evaluation, with the government emphasizing that controls must extend beyond banks and other financial institutions. Attorney General Wilfred Abrahams addressed the issue in the Senate on September 23, 2026, during debate on the Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism (Prevention and Control) Amendment

The Senate of American Samoa has given final approval to the Money Laundering Prevention and Enforcement Act of 2026, establishing a dedicated criminal-law framework targeting the laundering of proceeds derived from criminal activity. The legislation was approved by the Senate on September 23, 2026. The measure is intended to create clear criminal offences covering the concealment, movement and handling of money obtained through unlawful activity in American Samoa. The bill f

The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has published its 2026 Mutual Evaluation Report on Türkiye, finding that the country has strengthened its defences against money laundering, terrorist financing and proliferation financing, while identifying a number of areas requiring further improvement. The assessment examined Türkiye’s AML/CFT/CPF framework and its effectiveness based on the situation at the time of the FATF’s on-site visit in November 2025. The evaluation found that

British authorities have frozen a London townhouse purchased for £53 million after official property records identified a connection between the property's registered owner and a person subject to UK financial sanctions. The property, located in Belgravia, was purchased in October 2023 by Zhao Chen, who is not herself designated under UK sanctions. The restriction was placed on the property in August 2026. Land Registry documents show that Zhao Chen acquired the property for

Cambodian authorities have stated that major online scam compounds across the country have been dismantled following a nationwide enforcement campaign launched in mid-2025, while acknowledging that criminal networks continue to operate through smaller and more dispersed locations. The campaign has targeted large-scale facilities associated with online fraud, including compounds used by transnational criminal groups. Cambodian officials said the enforcement campaign continued

The UK Gambling Commission has suspended the combined remote operating licence of Targetlocal Ltd, which trades as Ken Howell’s Sports Betting and operates the website kenhowells.com, following regulatory enquiries that identified anti-money laundering failings. The suspension took effect immediately on 21 September 2026 and applies to operating licence number 000422-R-336567-002. The affected licence covers Targetlocal’s online casino, sports betting and virtual event bettin

Former Nodus International Bank chief executive Tomás Niembro Concha has been sentenced to 112 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to a multimillion-dollar wire fraud conspiracy and a separate conspiracy to evade US sanctions involving Venezuela. Niembro, 64, a Spanish and Venezuelan national and former CEO of the Puerto Rico-based international bank, was also sentenced to three years of supervised release and ordered to forfeit more than $16.9 million. The forfeit

US federal prosecutors are investigating whether Binance knowingly allowed trading activity that violated US sanctions relating to Iran, adding a new layer of regulatory scrutiny to the cryptocurrency exchange. The reported investigation is being led by the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, with the Justice Department’s Criminal Division in Washington also involved. The inquiry concerns whether transactions involving Iran or Iranian-linked parties we

Three UK company directors have been convicted and fined in the first prosecutions brought for breaches of the Companies House identity verification requirements introduced under the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023. The cases were announced on 17 September 2026 and represent an early enforcement action under the new identity verification regime. The directors were fined £166, £307 and £80 respectively following proceedings brought by the Insolvency Service.

Authorities in the United Arab Emirates and Sweden have arrested seven people in a coordinated investigation into an international money laundering network that allegedly handled approximately 70 million Swedish kronor, equivalent to about AED 26.5 million, over a period of ten months. The suspected leader of the network, a Swedish national, was arrested in the United Arab Emirates after fleeing Sweden. He was the subject of an Interpol Red Notice in connection with suspected

The European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) in Milan has conducted searches and frozen assets worth €2.6 million as part of an investigation into suspected fraud involving resources from Italy’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR), which is financed through the European Union’s Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF). The frozen assets form part of a €4.9 million order issued by the judge for preliminary investigations at the Court of Milan against four companies a

The United States has imposed sanctions on Iranian cryptocurrency exchange BitBank, its software developer and three individuals linked to Iranian financier Babak Zanjani, alleging that the network facilitated the movement of hundreds of millions of dollars in Bitcoin to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). The designations were announced by the US Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) on 17 September 2026 under Executive Order 13902, w