Money laundering represents the fifth largest economy in the world and equates to 3% of global GDP.
Leading defence and security organisation, BAE Systems has set out six criminal types responsible for money laundering around the world, to help global businesses understand the motivations and modus operandi of criminals targeting their business. The company hopes to help businesses fight the significant threat posed by financial crime.
Accounting for almost $2trn each year[1], money laundering is having an increasingly devastating effect on societies around the world. The criminals behind money laundering are finding ever more sophisticated ways of disguising their activity. Research shows that money laundering activity has a significant impact on society as it drives up property prices and increases taxes and insurance premiums while also funding other criminal activity such as the drugs trade and international terrorism.
BAE Systems’ subject matter experts analysed customer data to identify the people most commonly involved in money laundering. They are:
Rob Horton, Head of Financial Crime Solutions EMEA at BAE Systems said: “In today’s digital world, criminals are constantly exploring new ways to find and exploit loopholes in legitimate channels to make the proceeds of crime look like legal tender. But the real issue isn’t simply the illicit money, it’s the wider impact of these criminal acts. Money laundering keeps hospitals, schools and libraries from being built as the proceeds of crime contribute nothing to the public purse. Launderers are also bending the property market, pricing first time buyers out of many cities. And the profits of money laundering are the cause of organised crime across the world, from drug trafficking and gun smuggling, to fraud and modern slavery.
“The fight against money laundering needs a new era of collaboration between the financial services industry, government and technology and compliance specialists. Understanding the motivations and modus operandi of the people behind it is the critical first step. Businesses need to understand the enemies they face in order to successfully protect themselves against them.”
(Source: BAE Systems)
[1] https://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/frontpage/2011/October/illicit-money_-how-much-is-out-there.html