Curbing Tech-Driven Money Laundering: Measures Proposed by the Bank of Russia
Businesses in Shadows Resort to Using Corporate Credit Cards for Transactions
The Bank of Russia has swung into action to thwart money laundering through tech companies and personal cards. Here's what might be coming your way:
- Suspicious Storm Warnings: Banks are urged to keep a hawk-eye on transactions, scrutinizing any odd patterns that could hint at fraudulent activities. This involves checking for activities from devices known to be behind shady business, or transfers to dubious accounts on watchlists.
- Finance-O-Meter: Financial institutions are focusing on transactions blowing past certain limits, such as daily amounts exceeding 100,000 rubles or monthly totals surpassing a million rubles.
- If in Doubt, Report It Out: Banks are being encouraged to sound the alarm on shady activities, like clients behaving peculiarly or transactions veering off their usual trails.
- New Rules on 'Droppers': Recent legislation has tightened the reins on individuals known as 'droppers' – those cashing and withdrawing funds tainted by crime – limiting their transfers to 100,000 rubles a month.
- Know Thy Mule: Banks are expected to dig deep and identify 'mule' accounts – those used to transfer dirty money. They should also keep tabs on tech companies that might be involved in such vicious cycles. In case of suspicious activities, certain limits might be imposed on specific deposit operations, even during off-hours.
Hiding in the Shadows: Tech of the Underbelly Economy
The underbelly economy is no stranger to tech tricks, and its methods of choice include:
- Peers'n'Cash: These straight transfers between individuals offer a cloak of anonymity that the traditional banking system can't match. It's this element of mystery that makes P2P transfers a popular choice for shady dealings.
- Crypto's Dark Side: Cryptocurrencies, like Bitcoin, offer the charm of anonymity and decentralization, making them a tantalizing prospect for the shadows. Transactions are recorded on a public ledger (blockchain), yet identifying the parties involved can prove challenging, making these money flows ripe for abuse.
While the Bank of Russia is taking concrete steps to stay on top of these tricks, the underbelly economy keeps finding ways to evade detection, making the battle against financial wrongdoing an ongoing challenge for regulatory bodies.
- Given the increasing use of Peers'n'Cash transfers in the underbelly economy for questionable activities, finance institutions might consider implementing stricter monitoring of such transactions to comply with the Bank of Russia's anti-money laundering measures.
- In light of the crypto world's dark side being exploited in the underbelly economy for money laundering, the Bank of Russia could potentially explore collaboration with cryptocurrency exchanges and tech companies to strengthen Know Your Customer (KYC) and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) policies, thereby making these transactions more transparent.
