Remember Mārti?? Bunkus, who paid with his life for ML whistleblowing as killer is jailed

From Paul O'Donoghue for AML Intelligence

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Of all the FATF-related news in the last few days, the one which snuck under the radar could perhaps be the most important for businesses.

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The Paris-based organization?has just announced a public consultation around its ‘Recommendation 1’.

This recommendation gives high-level guidance on how FATF thinks nations should implement AML rules.

The Financial Action Task Force proposed update would effectively see state regulators give financial institutions more leeway around AML recommendations once they’ve made an honest attempt to uphold standards.

The organization said the move is aimed at easing the regulatory burden on financial institutions.

Given the FATF’s position in effectively setting global AML standards, it could mark a major change for how financial institutions deal with state watchdogs.

REMEMBER MARTINS BUNKUS:?Mārti?? Bunkus is not a name which many in the anti-financial crime community may be familiar with.

However, he deserves to be remembered for his attempts to curb money laundering in Latvia. It was something for which he paid the ultimate price.

Bunkus was shockingly gunned down in broad daylight in 2018. He had survived a previous assassination attempt in 2016 when a gunman’s weapon malfunctioned, and continued to speak out on financial crime.

A court in Riga has now found that Mihails Ulmans, the former owner of Latvia’s LPB Bank,?was one of those who organized the attack.

Ulmans and a co-organizer were sentenced to 15 years in prison each.?

Viktor Krivoshey, the shooter, was sentenced to life in prison for carrying out the murder for €70,000. All sentences are subject to appeal.

CONFERENCE

EAFCS:?The countdown is officially on for the ‘European Anti-Financial Crime Summit’.

Dates have been confirmed - May 6 and May 7 ?- for the event, which promises to be Europe’s leading AFC conference in 2025.

With demand for the event growing rapidly, attendance is expected to rise from 650 participants in 2024 to an anticipated 900 in 2025, underscoring the summit’s increasing importance for industry leaders and policymakers.?

The event is a key platform for top executives from banks, financial institutions, tech companies, regulators, and policymakers to discuss the most pressing issues in anti-financial crime.?

A host of top speakers are set to be announced in the coming months.

With tickets expected to sell out fast, move quickly to get your ticket?HERE .

ARGENTINA:?Argentina’s economy has lurched from one financial crisis to another in recent years.?

The most pressing one has been soaring prices - the annual rate of inflation has often breached 100%, decimating savings and squeezing consumers.

President Javier Milei has been desperately trying to convince international investors that the country is a good place to do business. So it’s perhaps unsurprising that Argentine officials?celebrated the country dodging the FATF ‘grey list’.?

The AML body’s latest assessment of the nation’s AML standards raised a few concerns, such as the risk of money laundering due to corruption.

But it found officials had done enough to keep it off the grey list, in what’s being viewed as a win for president Milei.

LAW & ORDER

TETHER:?Tether is the world's largest stablecoin, a type of cryptocurrency designed to hold a fixed value over time.

Investor confidence is key for the currency to retain its link to the value of the U.S. dollar - which is why reports of AML probes have raised alarms.

The Wall Street Journal reported that U.S. authorities are probing potential violations by the cryptocurrency firm of AML or sanctions rules.

However, Tether's top executive denied this,?saying the company has seen no sign it is under investigation.

U.S. officials have been weighing sanctions on Tether because of widespread use by sanctioned individuals and groups, the WSJ report said.

But Tether said the WSJ article “carelessly glosses over Tether’s well-documented and extensive dealings with law enforcement to crack down on bad actors seeking”.

GAMING:?Finally, a recent fine of just under $1 million for a California hotel and casino hasn’t gathered too much attention.

But the penalty meted out to the Lake Elsinore Hotel and Casino ?is notable as being FinCEN's first enforcement action against a casino in six years.

It is perhaps a sign that the state body is looking more seriously at the gaming sector, and also marked the first resolution between FinCEN and the California Justice Department’s Bureau of Gambling Control.

FinCEN said the violations included a lack of an effective AML program and failure to file required currency transaction reports and suspicious activity reports.

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