Is it a crime for banks to knowingly allow stolen funds to be deposited?
Banking
Asked by Question Bot01/May/20171 answer
1 Answer
F
Faisal Khan
Answered 01/May/2017
Absolutely. If the money is knowingly stolen (proven) or has high-indication of being stolen, then it must report the same to the regulator. Depending on the country, bank, regulator and source-of-funds country and circumstances, quite a few anti-money laundering flags would be set.
The money that is sitting in the Western Banks by means of embezzlement, corruption, etc. didn't just go straight into the foreign accounts. It was cleansed before being injected into the banking system or was shown as legit. If the bank suspects the origin of funds, they can ask for further proof. If a court appointed order or investigation in the country where the depository funds are held, indicates that the source of funds is questionable, an account freeze can be implemented, or even in rare circumstances confiscated.
Don't blame the banking system for the bad funds if they are parked there, if the reverse were true, what would be the uptake on it. If you can find a loop-hole in the law or satisfy the source of funds questions, then you are allowed to deposit the funds. The banks have no a priori knowledge of what originally happened with the funds.
But yes taxation and/or embezzlement and/or blood-money funds are deposited, banks today would rather not take the headache of working with such clients. But then again, many banks are fooled into it.
The money that is sitting in the Western Banks by means of embezzlement, corruption, etc. didn't just go straight into the foreign accounts. It was cleansed before being injected into the banking system or was shown as legit. If the bank suspects the origin of funds, they can ask for further proof. If a court appointed order or investigation in the country where the depository funds are held, indicates that the source of funds is questionable, an account freeze can be implemented, or even in rare circumstances confiscated.
Don't blame the banking system for the bad funds if they are parked there, if the reverse were true, what would be the uptake on it. If you can find a loop-hole in the law or satisfy the source of funds questions, then you are allowed to deposit the funds. The banks have no a priori knowledge of what originally happened with the funds.
But yes taxation and/or embezzlement and/or blood-money funds are deposited, banks today would rather not take the headache of working with such clients. But then again, many banks are fooled into it.