As the awareness and impact of money laundering and terrorist financing increases, so does the global effort to combat it through more stringent regulation of financial service providers and related industries. Organizations striving to understand and meet these regulations are faced with significant challenges in their efforts to prevent, detect and report any activities related to money laundering or terrorist financing.

Drug dealers, human traffickers and other criminals leverage money laundering to transform any gains from their criminal activities to legitimate proceeds and hide their illegal origin in the process. The International Monetary Fund in 1996 estimated that the aggregate size of money laundering at between two and five percent of the world’s gross domestic product.

Using 1996 statistics, these percentages would indicate that money laundering ranged between US Dollar (USD) 590 billion and USD 1.5 trillion. This level of activity can significantly impact the economies of nations and businesses worldwide while also compromising the integrity of financial institutions and public safety.

Amidst the aftermath of global terrorist attacks, governments and global organizations worldwide have developed more stringent anti-money laundering (AML) regulations to combat this threat to economic stability and security. These regulations include the US Patriot Act , the UK Financial Services and Markets Act, the Basel II Accord, the Second and Third EU Money Laundering Directive. Rapid changes to regulations have increased

the demands on financial services organizations who must understand and adopt the new requirements. Failure to do so can result in compromised credibility and significant fines.

The global threat of money laundering poses unique challenges for financial service providers who must implement policies and procedures to ensure compliance with the latest legislation.

Access to timely, accurate and relevant information related to this legislation, and potential clients who may be implicated in illicit activities, is critical in this endeavour. Mongoose Global Intelligence has the ability to provide financial service institutions with the systems and intelligence to combat money laundering.