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A vast criminal ecosystem worth billions has been revealed by the National Crime Agency (NCA), which uncovered a sophisticated cash-to-crypto infrastructure operating across at least twenty-eight towns and cities throughout the UK. According to investigators, this network transformed profits from drug trafficking, firearms supply, and organised immigration crime into cryptocurrency before funnelling it into a Kyrgyz financial institution acquired specifically for sanctions ev

Binance is redefining global assumptions about crypto crime controls after newly released figures showed a steep decline in illicit activity moving through the exchange. What many once considered an improbable shift has now positioned Binance as a leading case study in large-scale AML transformation, having pushed criminal exposure to levels rarely observed across digital trading platforms. The findings have generated significant global attention because the exchange handles

A sprawling fraud scheme targeting a federal healthcare program and the layered laundering of its illicit proceeds has revealed a major compliance vulnerability in the sector. The case, involving individuals in California, centered on the submission of false claims to a national medical benefits program and the subsequent movement of the funds through complex structures, illustrating how criminal actors exploit healthcare systems to generate and conceal illicit profits. At th

A newly unsealed federal indictment lays out an intricate money laundering conspiracy that used cryptocurrency ATMs, cash deposits, and fast digital-asset transfers to move illicit proceeds across borders under the guise of legitimate business operations. At the center of the case is Firas Isa and his Chicago-based company, Virtual Assets LLC—known commercially as Crypto Dispensers—presented by prosecutors as a clear example of how crypto-enabled laundering can be embedded in

Brussels is considering another round of restrictive actions aimed at those enabling Russia’s so-called “shadow fleet” to move oil, as the bloc intensifies efforts to curb Moscow’s capacity to fund its war in Ukraine.   Sources say EU foreign ministers, gathering in Brussels on Thursday, will examine ways to boost cooperation with ship-registering nations in order to disrupt Russia’s methods for evading existing sanctions.   In a document circulated ahead of the meeting, Pola

A Detroit man has been sentenced for covertly channeling cryptocurrency to the ISIS terror organization, a scheme that laid bare how digital assets can serve as concealed pipelines for extremist financing. The case illustrates how a lone actor can sidestep conventional controls by blending encrypted technologies, anonymous communications, and privacy-driven transaction tools that hinder AML visibility across the digital financial landscape. Investigators uncovered a trail of

FATF’s most recent follow-up review of Vietnam portrays a system that is gradually reinforcing its defences but still grappling with structural shortcomings that shape how banks, intermediaries and designated non-financial professions manage the risks of money laundering and terrorism financing. The evaluation acknowledges visible progress, yet it also confirms that several technical weaknesses continue to prevent Vietnam from reaching full alignment with global AML standards

India’s financial crime enforcement authority announced on Thursday that it has taken into custody Manoj Gaur, the former chairman of Jaypee Infratech, over allegations that he diverted funds collected from thousands of home buyers. The company, once a prominent name in India’s real estate and infrastructure sectors, had been responsible for major housing developments in Noida as well as construction of the Yamuna Expressway, the 165-kilometre (100-mile) roadway that links No

Italy’s Customs and Monopolies Agency (ADM) has revised its Multi-year Investment Plan for 2025–2027, allocating €28 million specifically toward the digital transformation and regulatory enhancement of the national gaming framework.   This funding forms a notable component of the broader €500 million modernisation initiative and highlights the strategic importance of gaming within Italy’s wider technological and organisational reform agenda. The investment focuses on reinforc

On November 13, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) issued a formal finding and a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) declaring that transactions connected to ten specific gambling operations in Mexico constitute a class of activity posing a primary money laundering threat. The agency laid out a proposal to block these establishments from utilizing the U.S. financial system by instituting a special measure that would bar covere

Fraud networks have always depended on deception, but the surge in holiday-season scams is exposing a far more entrenched threat: the large-scale use of fabricated eCommerce stores and stolen identities to move illicit money through the financial system. What appears to be another spike in consumer fraud actually conceals a sophisticated laundering architecture fueled by synthetic identities, unvetted merchants, and rapid, opaque digital payments. During peak shopping periods

The European Union is preparing a new proposal to the United States aimed at advancing the next phase of the trade deal reached between the two sides earlier this summer, according to people familiar with the matter.   The plan, which has not yet been announced in the US, will center on five key areas, including the lowering of rates for additional products such as wines and spirits.   The initiative comes ahead of a meeting later this month between EU trade chief Maros Sefco

Brazil is poised to become a pioneer in global tax reform with the introduction of a unique value-added tax (VAT) system that promises to create a more competitive and investor-friendly economy, according to a new working paper published by the OECD Economics Department. The paper, titled “The reform of Brazil’s consumption tax system,” was released on Monday, November 10, and authored by OECD policy experts Jens Mathias Arnold, Piet Battiau, Falilou Fall and Karoline Spies.

A 47-year-old woman in the United Kingdom has been sentenced to 11 years in prison after authorities uncovered her role in controlling a vast cryptocurrency laundering operation tied to an international investment fraud. Investigators found that she attempted to convert billions in digital assets into luxury properties, jewelry, and cash, using complex schemes to disguise the true source of the funds. According to law enforcement, the woman spent several years amassing large

Former Speaker of the House Arthur Lira has called on Brazil’s Federal Government to focus on combating illegal betting operations before pursuing higher taxes on licensed companies.   Speaking to journalists during an event in São Paulo, Lira said that betting is “inevitable” in Brazil and argued that prohibition is not an effective approach to managing the industry.   The congressman emphasized that authorities should prioritize enforcement against unlicensed betting platfo

Beximco has emerged at the center of a sweeping money laundering investigation in Bangladesh after authorities uncovered what they believe to be a sophisticated system designed to channel export proceeds abroad without repatriating the funds. Investigators allege that once export documents—including invoices and shipping papers—were prepared, banks processed the transactions as standard trade operations. Letters of credit were issued, and the shipments were logged as complete

The Netherlands’ gambling regulation entered a new phase in July 2025 as the Kansspelautoriteit (KSA) significantly expanded its enforcement scope, extending its oversight beyond licensed operators to include affiliates, media organisations, and marketing agencies. This development represents a decisive shift in the regulator’s strategy, designed to dismantle the broader ecosystem that sustains illegal and non-compliant gambling activity across the Dutch market. For the first

The Bank of England (BoE) has unveiled a consultation paper detailing its plans to regulate systemic stablecoins, digital currencies designed to maintain a stable value against the pound sterling. The proposals, published on November 10, aim to ensure that stablecoins are sufficiently secure for everyday payments while protecting the broader UK economy. Systemic stablecoins are digital tokens whose value is linked to traditional money, such as the pound, or to assets like gov

Norsk Rikstoto has come under intense regulatory scrutiny after Norway’s Gambling Commission and the national financial supervisory authority identified severe breaches of anti-money laundering (AML) requirements across the operator’s activities.   The findings point to a systematic breakdown of compliance, where key controls were missing, legal duties ignored, and decisions left undocumented—seriously impairing the company’s capacity to detect and report suspicious behavior.

One of the largest anti-money laundering (AML) supervision failures in Europe’s virtual asset sector has come to light, as the Bank of Ireland imposed a €21.4 million fine on Coinbase Europe after regulators discovered that more than 30 million crypto transactions escaped detection entirely.   The incident has exposed deep flaws in the company’s transaction monitoring systems—ranging from design and governance weaknesses to delayed disclosure, vendor oversight lapses, and a b