Blame politicians, not banks, for the FinCEN mess
Hello, and welcome to Oligarchy. You’re receiving this email a day earlier than normal because the release of the FinCEN Files, a global investigation conducted by more than 400 journalists, is the stuff this newsletter is made for.
A DIFFERENT KINDS OF SARS
If you’re the kind of person who reads this newsletter, you’ll probably have already read about the FinCEN Files stories, based on the leaking of 2,100 or so Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) from within the U.S. Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), and no doubt have strong views on the culpability of major financial institutions that move dirty money around, without raising a finger to stop it.
In case you’re coming to this cold, FinCEN is the repository for all the secret reports that bankers and other professionals make on their clients’ dodgy businesses. It’s a giant clearing house for America’s financial snitches. Among other things, the reports reveal how some of the giants of Western finance helped oligarchs, terrorists and drug smugglers wash the dirt out of trillions of dollars.
The outrage is justified: money laundering is the underlying support industry that makes evil possible. Without it, mobsters, drug cartels, modern slavers, and tax evaders would struggle to operate, and the world would be a much better place.