Search results

MR. DENIS HOWELL, M.P., Minister for Libraries, who was to have told Conference how public libraries had progressed since the Act, had to withdraw and so we did not find out how the responsible minister felt about us.

The purpose of this paper is to cut through the rhetoric that shrouds Russia's anti‐money laundering regime to uncover the reality that lies beneath.

This paper relies on both primary and secondary sources in Russian and English that deal with the problems of money laundering in the Russian context. Relevant sections of the Russian Criminal Code as well as Russia's anti‐money laundering regulations have been consulted.

Overall, the Russian anti‐money laundering regime has thus far proved ineffective in terms of meeting its stated purposes of combating organized crime and terrorism. Its limited success stems largely from structural weaknesses in the Russian banking system as well as that industry's lack of a culture of regulatory compliance. Moreover, Russian authorities have opportunistically seized on the current anti‐money laundering regime as a useful tool in the pursuit of ends unconnected to the fight against organized crime and terrorism. The Russian authorities have used the regime to attempt to reform the banking system and to extend their strategic control in the domestic political and business realms. The ineffectiveness of the anti‐money laundering regulations and their usage to achieve ulterior aims undermine the legitimacy of the regime as a whole.

The paper looks beyond the technical difficulties in applying the anti‐money laundering regulations and examines the misuses of the anti‐money laundering regime in the Russian context. However, the problems raised in the paper are not unique to Russia and have relevance to other jurisdictions, especially countries that are members of the Financial Action Task Force.

This paper seeks to identify the internal threats posed to financial institutions by international organized crime (IOC) groups, and outline relevant law enforcement strategies.

Case studies and historical data from several US law enforcement agencies were relied on to identify the IOC threats, and to provide a subjective description of a strategic framework.

IOC has steadily expanded its presence, sophistication and influence, and today poses a substantial threat to financial institutions and markets throughout the world. IOC groups routinely utilize corrupt bank employees, attorneys, accountants and other gatekeepers, or “enemy insiders,” in a wide array of complex schemes involving money laundering, financial fraud, and high‐tech computer intrusions resulting in billions of dollars of losses each year to individual consumers and the global economy. A comprehensive law enforcement strategy to combat IOC must prioritize the threats, marshal intelligence, capitalize on foreign partnerships, and employ non‐law enforcement measures.

Law enforcement must increase its efforts to work collaboratively with public and private institutions, academia, and foreign counterparts to share intelligence on IOC activities, forecast emerging threats, identify priority targets, and pursue adaptable strategies that will be effective and sustainable far into the future.

The paper increases the public's awareness, and promotes collaborative efforts among various societal components to address the IOC threats to financial institutions.

The successful implementation of the strategies discussed in this paper will enhance the ability of law enforcement and prosecution agencies to tackle the evolving challenges of IOC, and to help preserve the stability and integrity of our financial institutions.

This paper explores the threat that transnational political corruption poses to both the world's development banking and commercial banking sectors.

This paper was written from the perspective of someone who has served as a financial fraud prosecutor, an investigator for the World Bank, and currently as a banking supervisor and regulator. The paper uses three case studies to demonstrate how corrupt actors, using various fraudulent and corrupt schemes, steal funds from development banks, and then launder the illicit proceeds from these schemes into legitimate commercial banking systems around the world.

The paper describes the reputational and financial risks posed to the commercial and development banking sectors from transnational political corruption, and predicts that these risks will grow as more signatory nations to various anti‐corruption treaties and conventions criminalize the bribery of foreign public officials.

Left unchecked, both commercial and development banks face growing political, legal, and economic risks from political corruption.

Drawing on the lessons learned from the case studies analyzed in the paper, the author offers a number of practical recommendations aimed at reducing the threat posed to commercial and development banks from public corruption.

The paper establishes a common threat posed by transnational political corruption to both the commercial and development banking sectors.

Money laundering, the process by which the proceeds derived from criminal activity are disguised or concealed, is a problem of international dimensions. US law enforcement officials estimate that between $100bn and $300bn in US currency is laundered each year. Some observers estimate the global range to be between $200bn and $500bn each year, making money laundering the world's third largest business behind foreign exchange and the oil industry. The International Monetary Fund provides an even higher estimate, determining in 1999 that the aggregate size of global money laundering could be between 2 and 5 per cent of the world's gross domestic product, translating into $590bn to $1.5trn annually.

The purpose of this paper is to analyse the new Russian law on Money laundering. Globalisation has turned the international financial systems into a paradise for money launderers. As much as globalisation has expanded opportunities. The purpose of this paper is to analyse the new Russian law on money laundering which brought some changes to the existing system was introduced in Russia in 2002. Even though it has improved the regulation on money laundering greatly, it has failed to efficiently combat terrorism. Overall, the Russian anti-money laundering regime has proved ineffective in terms of meeting its stated purposes of combating organised crime and terrorism. The limited success of the Russian anti-money laundering law stems largely from the fact that Russian banking system is structurally weak.

This paper analyses the problems through literature review. Also, the problem will be looked at from an international law perspective, explaining why Russian efforts will not be efficient as long as no consensus is reached at international level.

This paper starts from the premise that Russian made great effort to comply with international recommendations but that its law fails to efficiently deal with terrorism finance partly due to the fact that no consensus exists at international level as to the definition of the terrorism. Furthermore, the doubt persists as to the real aim pursued by Russian Government while enacting the money laundering law.

Few papers have been published about money laundering in Russia, but none of them look at the problem of the lack of definition of terrorism at international level to explain the deficiencies of the system in place.

The utterance at a recent council estimates meeting of an Alderman to the effect that he opposed increase of the book‐fund of the libraries in the town because, whenever he wanted a book, he bought it, was, we suspect, a vainglorious one used for a special purpose and time. It was obviously, too, that of a man who may read on occasion, but is not a regular user of books. There are many such and, no doubt, their limited point of view is to be encouraged, so far as book‐purchase is concerned. What it disregards, or does not understand, is that the real reader cannot easily contemplate life without books; he never has enough of them, even if he is not a hoarder of them. There are thousands such. Their homes are not large enough, and their purses are too limited, for them to buy everything they want to read. The “Alderman” can feel that books are cheap; he spends more, if he has the means, on a box of cigars, or a bottle of whiskey, than any ordinary book costs. A single visit to a theatre with his wife (with the inevitable accompanying dinner or supper and transport) costs him more than a shelf of them. If he throws away the book when read, or rejected—for only a few such books are read through by the type under consideration—that is of little more con‐sideration than his disposal of cigar ash or used theatre tickets. In this stringent time the greater part of the community depends upon the borrowed book. Inevitably this will increasingly be the case. Every man and woman, however, who loves books desires to possess them, and every wise librarian encourages that desire. It can reduce the use of libraries very little, if at all, and our business as librarians should be to provide for the literate nation, indeed to assist its making. There are many ways in which this might be done—the provision of lists on “Books for Every Home” with clear notes on why, for it must be realized that not every citizen knows the books that are commonplace tools. In how many homes, for instance, is Whittaker's Almanack to be found? A reference book, of course; but almost the first need of a household is a set of the best tools of this sort. Has any library yet issued a list with this special intention? Say, “Six Books necessary to Every Home”? We assume that when a reader is passionately drawn to a book he must buy it, but such attraction is mainly felt by those who are already book‐lovers. For others there are such questions as, where shall we put the books suggested? An answer may be that every librarian, in his own area, should urge that built‐in bookcases should be a feature in every house plan. He might do much to solve a real problem. He can continue, too, to assist book‐buying by his periodic exhibitions of books for prizes, presents (Christmas and birthday) and help to answer the question, “What books of great literature ought to be in every home for children and for life‐keeping?” His every convert would become also a life user of libraries.

One of the most pervasive economic crimes in the world today is money laundering. It has been estimated that some $2 to $3.6 trillion of hot money is laundered through the financial market each year. Such huge amounts of money cannot be successfully laundered without the involvement of financial intermediaries (such as bankers and lawyers) who used their expertise to conceal and obscure illegal activity. However, broader accounts of the role of financial intermediaries in corrupt practices are relatively scarce. The purpose of this paper is to examine some predatory activities of financial intermediaries in facilitating money laundering practices in Nigeria.

The paper locates the role of financial intermediaries within the sociological theory of profession to argue that these professionals facilitate money laundering despite their professional and ethical claims. The paper uses publicly available evidence to illuminate the role played by financial intermediaries in elite money laundering.

The evidence shows that, in pursuit of organisational and personal interest, the financial intermediaries create enabling structures that support illicit activities of political and economic elite in Nigeria. The paper concludes that the establishment of money laundering laws and the creation of anti‐money laundering agencies had not brought about professional transparency and ethical conduct.

The paper therefore suggests that Nigeria needs to reform its financial institutions to promote integrity, accountability and ethical professional conduct to curb money laundering and to build trust in the Nigerian financial system.

The social, economic and political effects of financial intermediaries' anti‐social practices are significant as huge amounts, often dwarfing the gross domestic product (GDP) of many nation states, are involved. These questionable practices by financial intermediaries increase profits, but harm citizens.

The paper is a general review of literature and evidence on contemporary issues.