Regulatory Alerts1997-11-01 | FinCEN Advisory - Issue 9Added
FinCEN Advisory - Issue 9: Colombian Black Market Peso Exchange
This advisory alerts banks and other depository institutions to a money laundering system used by Colombian drug cartels to avoid Bank Secrecy Act reporting requirements. The system involves selling U.S. drug proceeds to black market peso exchangers who place the currency into U.S. bank accounts through structured transactions below the $10,000 threshold, falsifying business receipts, or smuggling currency out of the country. The document outlines specific indicators for identifying suspicious activity, such as multiple daily deposits to multiple accounts or accounts opened by foreign nationals, and describes coordination efforts by the Interagency Coordination Group with financial and trade communities in the U.S., Colombia, Panama, and Mexico.