Opinion: Why crypto businesses need anti-money laundering regulations

Opinion by: Hazem Mulhim A recent DIFC Fintech conference provided some interesting insights into the current situation in terms of regulations and cryptocurrencies, including: The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) recently defined virtual asset service providers to include cryptocurrency exchanges, stable coin issuers, DeFi protocols, and non-fungible tokens (NFT) marketplaces.  This definition helps set the tone for […]

German Police Raid Residence of Russian Oligarch Alisher Usmanov; Tax Evasion and Money Laundering Suspected

Reported by: Ilya Lozovsky, Miranda Patrucic, Süddeutsche Zeitung, Norddeutsche Rundfunk (NDR), and Westdeutsche Rundfunk (WDR) German police this morning launched a raid on properties belonging to sanctioned Russian oligarch Alisher Usmanov on the shore of Lake Tegernsee in southern Bavaria. In response to previous reporting by Süddeutsche Zeitung, his spokesman provided a statement denying that […]

Oakland Investment Advisor Charged With Securities Fraud

Reported by: Department of Justice, U.S. Attorney’s Office, Northern District of California Oakland registered investment advisor was charged in a federal information filed today with securities fraud for trading upon non-public inside information, announced United States Attorney Stephanie M. Hinds and Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent in Charge Sean Ragan. According to the information […]

UK law enforcement finds unexpected connections found among overseas investment fraud & transnational crime

Reported by: Helen Parry Senior Regulatory Intelligence Expert / Thomson Reuters Regulatory Intelligence The United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) confiscation announcement relating to investment adviser Richard Faithfull, and the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) announcement concerning David Ames, highlight examples of successful convictions in cases concerning overseas transnational investment fraud. A close examination of the […]

Morgan Stanley Banker Put on Leave as Block-Trade Probe Heats Up

Reported by: Bloomberg Another Morgan Stanley executive whose communications were sought in a US probe into how Wall Street handles big stock trades has been placed on leave, amid a flurry of behind-the-scenes activity in the investigation.  Authorities haven’t accused anyone of wrongdoing. Morgan Stanley is embroiled in the sprawling investigation examining how Wall Street […]

FINRA Imposes a Fine on Vision Financial

Reported by: Bilal Jafar Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) recently announced that Vision Financial Markets LLC and Vision Brokerage Services have agreed to pay a fine as part of the settlement with the authority. According to the details shared by FINRA, Vision Financial and Vision Brokerage failed to establish and implement an appropriate anti-money laundering […]