Re:Why is everyone a bank?
by salawat on Tuesday November 19, 2019 @01:09AM
(#21570978)
The financial industry is difficult because of money laundering.
Any illegal activity requires a financial crime at some point to launder the spoils. Therefore, financial institutions are the perfect place for law enforcement to hook into to try to crack down on the more widespread and organized forms of crime. The financial system is so much of a force multiplier for criminal activity that LE can't really ignore it.
To hook in, they need you to do KYC, they need you to check with OFAC, they need you to do you to do SAR's and report any attempts to structure financial activity. Basically, actors in the financial services industry, as a prereq to being able to do so, have to agree to act as a modern day Stasi.
Thank the criminals and reactionary Congressfolk of the last fifty or so years.
Any illegal activity requires a financial crime at some point to launder the spoils. Therefore, financial institutions are the perfect place for law enforcement to hook into to try to crack down on the more widespread and organized forms of crime. The financial system is so much of a force multiplier for criminal activity that LE can't really ignore it.
To hook in, they need you to do KYC, they need you to check with OFAC, they need you to do you to do SAR's and report any attempts to structure financial activity. Basically, actors in the financial services industry, as a prereq to being able to do so, have to agree to act as a modern day Stasi.
Thank the criminals and reactionary Congressfolk of the last fifty or so years.