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The United Kingdom has introduced legislation to expand its sanctions regime against Iran, with new restrictions covering financial services, trade, energy, transport and shipping. The measures are intended to address Iran’s nuclear programme and other activities identified by the UK government as hostile or destabilising. The new legislation, the Iran (Sanctions) (Amendment) Regulations 2026, amends both the Iran (Sanctions) Regulations 2023 and the Iran (Sanctions) (Nuclear

Italian and German authorities have uncovered an alleged €4.5 million money laundering scheme involving funds intended for a sports association, with investigators tracing diverted money through a second allegedly fictitious association, family members and investments in Germany. The cross-border investigation involves three individuals, including the former legal representative of the Italian sports association. Coordinated action on 3 September resulted in the preventive se

The scale of cryptocurrency-enabled investment fraud operating from overseas scam centres has come into sharper focus after the U.S. Financial Crimes Enforcement Network identified approximately $12.7 billion in suspicious activity associated with digital asset investment scams. The analysis, based on 33,904 suspicious activity reports filed between September 2023 and January 2026, illustrates how fraud networks operating outside the United States have developed increasingly

The United States has imposed sanctions on a Turkish investment bank and two of its subsidiaries, accusing the institutions of helping Iran maintain access to international financial channels and facilitating transactions connected to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ Quds Force (IRGC-QF). The action, announced on September 4, represents a significant escalation in Washington’s campaign to restrict Iran’s access to the global financial system. The measures target Istanbu

Federal regulators have clarified that SAR confidentiality does not prevent banks and credit unions from discussing suspicious transactions, potential fraud and certain account restrictions with customers—as long as the existence of a Suspicious Activity Report is not disclosed. U.S. financial regulators have provided banks and credit unions with important clarification on how they can communicate with customers during fraud investigations while continuing to comply with the

Citibank's London branch has been fined £4.73 million by the UK's Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) after a regulatory investigation identified widespread failures that allowed hundreds of transactions involving sanctioned Russian entities and individuals to pass through the bank. The penalty relates to 970 payments with a combined value of approximately £19.7 million. Most of the breaches occurred between February and November 2022, following the introducti

US authorities have seized more than $560,000 in cryptocurrency allegedly intended to support Hamas, while simultaneously dismantling websites, servers and online communication infrastructure used to solicit digital-asset donations and recruit supporters. The operation represents another significant intervention against the use of cryptocurrency as a channel for terrorist financing and demonstrates the increasingly sophisticated methods being used by law enforcement to identi

Finance ministers and central bank governors from the world's largest economies have gathered in Asheville, North Carolina, for discussions dominated by geopolitical tensions, trade disputes and efforts to address mounting global debt. The two-day meeting is taking place under the US presidency of the G20 finance track, with Washington seeking international backing for its campaign to increase economic pressure on Iran. At the same time, disagreements over US tariffs have com

The US Financial Crimes Enforcement Network has proposed cutting Banque Misr's UAE operations off from the US correspondent banking system after identifying approximately $1.8 billion in transactions involving 103 companies that US authorities believe may form part of Iranian shadow-banking networks. The proposed action, announced on 28 August 2026, represents a major escalation in US efforts to restrict Iran's access to the international financial system. It targets the UAE

Singapore is preparing to auction hundreds of pieces of luxury jewellery and other high-value goods forfeited in one of the country's largest money-laundering investigations, turning assets linked to the case into proceeds for the state through a carefully controlled disposal process. The first auctions are scheduled to begin on 7 September 2026 and will include 286 pieces of fine jewellery alongside hundreds of handbags and other luxury accessories. Together, the first two a

Qatar is placing greater emphasis on risk-based anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing controls within the country's non-profit sector, as authorities seek to strengthen the protection of charitable organisations from financial crime while ensuring that legitimate humanitarian activities can continue without unnecessary disruption. The Regulatory Authority for Charitable Activities organised a dedicated forum to examine the implications of the latest update to

Ukraine's state-owned Sense Bank has become the focus of a major money-laundering investigation involving allegations that approximately UAH 150 million, equivalent to around $3.4 million, was moved through the banking system as part of a scheme connected to a wider corruption investigation. The allegations have triggered significant action against senior figures at the bank and renewed questions about the effectiveness of its anti-money laundering controls, governance and st

The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has announced a new round of sanctions targeting individuals, companies and networks connected with Russia, reinforcing Washington’s continued use of financial restrictions to limit activities considered to support the Russian state and its strategic interests. The measures form part of the broader U.S. sanctions framework directed at Russia and underline the continuing importance of sanctions scree

Australia's financial intelligence agency AUSTRAC has uncovered potentially hundreds of millions of dollars in suspected mortgage fraud across 10 major Australian banks, exposing significant weaknesses in the country's lending sector. The findings emerged from Operation Claw, a joint analysis conducted through AUSTRAC's Fintel Alliance, which brought together data from 10 major lenders to identify patterns that may not have been visible within individual institutions. Most of

Ukraine has expanded its autonomous sanctions regime against Russia, adding 87 individuals and 54 entities to its sanctions list in a coordinated series of measures approved by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The measures were introduced through four presidential decrees and target individuals and companies connected with Russia and activities considered to support or facilitate Russian interests. The latest additions bring a further layer of pressure to Ukraine's expanding sa

Hungarian authorities have closed a money laundering investigation involving employees of Ukraine's state-owned Oschadbank after determining that there was no evidence of a criminal offence. The decision brings an end to a case that began with the detention of seven Ukrainian cash-in-transit employees and the seizure of a substantial shipment of cash and gold in Hungary earlier this year. The investigation was conducted by Hungary's National Tax and Customs Administration, kn

Hong Kong Customs has uncovered a suspected money laundering operation involving approximately HK$35 million in suspected criminal proceeds following a financial investigation connected to an earlier narcotics case. Two local men, both aged 33, have been arrested in connection with the alleged laundering activity. The investigation began after Customs officers uncovered a dangerous drugs case in August 2025 involving drugs with an estimated value of approximately HK$8.3 milli

German prosecutors have brought charges against nine people accused of participating in an international fraud network that allegedly obtained and misused the payment card details of more than three million people across 193 countries. The investigation, known as “Operation Chargeback”, uncovered an extensive scheme involving fraudulent subscription websites, unauthorised credit card charges, money laundering and the alleged infiltration of Germany’s payment infrastructure. T

KPMG Australia has confirmed that it reached a settlement with a former employee who had raised allegations of wrongdoing within the firm's tax division, adding another layer to the growing scrutiny surrounding the professional services firm's governance, whistleblower processes and treatment of misconduct allegations. The settlement relates to historical allegations concerning KPMG Australia's tax practice and comes as the firm faces a separate parliamentary inquiry into all

Austrian authorities have uncovered an international sanctions-evasion network that allegedly diverted more than €3.3 million worth of specialised European industrial equipment to Russian defence manufacturers, exposing the increasingly sophisticated methods being used to circumvent restrictions on trade with Russia. The investigation centred on a Vienna-based company that allegedly arranged the procurement and onward delivery of controlled machinery and specialist metalworki