American Banks Transferred $312 Billion in Dirty Money

American banks were responsible for transferring 312 billion dollars for Chinese money launderers between 2020 and 2024, according to a new report. In a consultation with the U.S. Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) on Thursday, the agency analyzed over 137,000 reports under the Bank Secrecy Act from 2020 to 2024.

It was found that more than 62 billion dollars annually on average passed through the U.S. banking system from Chinese money launderers. Chinese money laundering networks have created a symbiosis with Mexican drug cartels. Cartels need to launder drug proceeds in U.S. dollars, while Chinese gangs want U.S. dollars to circumvent Chinese currency control laws, the report states.

– These networks launder proceeds for Mexican drug cartels and are involved in other significant underground money movement schemes within the United States and around the world – said FinCEN Director Andrea Gacki.

In addition to drug money laundering, Chinese gangs are involved in human trafficking and smuggling, healthcare fraud, and elder abuse. They are also involved in laundering 53.7 billion dollars in real estate through suspicious transactions, the report adds.

Crypto Continues to Get an Unfair Rap

Despite this, pro-bank politicians like high-ranking Senate Banking Committee member Senator Elizabeth Warren have often singled out cryptocurrencies for money laundering and illegal purposes.

– Bad actors are increasingly turning to cryptocurrencies to facilitate money laundering – she said earlier this year, calling for stricter regulation.

The latest figures reveal the often-overlooked fact that most laundered money has nothing to do with cryptocurrencies. According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, the estimated amount of laundered money globally in a year exceeds 2 trillion dollars.

In comparison, the illegal volume of crypto trading across the entire crypto space was about 189 billion dollars over the past five years, according to Chainalysis. Illegal activities are only a small part of the crypto ecosystem. It is estimated to be less than 1 percent of the total crypto volume, according to TRM Labs’ head of policy and strategic partnerships, Angela Ang.

– FinCEN’s findings align with a broader pattern; these underground banking networks operate as a shadow financial system for organized crime worldwide, functioning at the seams of banking systems – Ang added.