By Mani Dabiri | Published May 11, 2018 | Posted in Civil Business Litigation and Investigations, Federal and State Criminal Defense, Government Subpoenas and Investigations, White-Collar and Regulatory Defense | Tagged Tags: bankingandfinance, businessandcommerce, jurisdiction, licensingandregistration, moneylaundering, nationalsecurity, OFAC |
Iran Sanctions Look to Snap Back
By now you’ve heard the news, and it’s pretty much what it sounds like. Following a wind-down period of 90 or 180 days, the U.S. government will restore the economic sanctions that it lifted under the 2015 nuclear deal. These sanctions generally affect foreign businesses who do business with Iran. After the wind-down periods, they Read More
Read MoreSEC Chair Offers Advice on Bitcoin and Its Ilk
This week, the chair of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission weighed in on crypto-currencies as well as ICOs or initial coin offerings. With the price of bitcoin nearing $20,000, it probably comes at the right time. You may have been wondering yourself: What are the rules for this stuff? Are they being followed? And what are the risks Read More
Read MoreSecurities Fraud: But Was It Even A Security?
What is a security, anyway? The California Court of Appeal tackled that question recently in a case about a loan between friends. A good starting point is that the law considers a security to be an investment contract, but there’s more to it than that. You may be familiar with common examples like publicly-traded stocks and bonds, but Read More
Read MoreMuch Ado About Little
The U.S. Supreme Court decided its big insider-trading case of the term on Tuesday, and it turns out you still can’t toss a friend or family member a tip to trade on. Who knew? Here are the facts. The defendant’s brother-in-law was an investment banker who advised major healthcare companies on mergers and acquisitions. Over time, he shared inside information Read More
Read MoreSEC Reports Enforcement Results for 2016
As we wind down the calendar year, the Securities and Exchange Commission has already reported its enforcement results for the fiscal year that ended September 30. In case you missed it, here’s the press release. Naturally, there’s some self-patting on the back, but if the past predicts the future, the agency is looking to file cases. Its Read More
Read MoreCFTC Launches New Website for Whistleblowers
Another thing about the Commodity Futures Trading Commission: Last month, the agency unveiled the new website for its whistleblower program at www.whistleblower.gov. It looks pretty good, and it’s easy to navigate. It tells you what you need to know about the program, including how to submit a tip and how to apply for an award. The CFTC’s whistleblower program was created Read More
Read MoreWhen Money-Laundering Laws Become “Smurfin’ Ridiculous”
While we’re on the subject of money laundering, let’s talk about “smurfing.” That’s slang for the term “structuring,” which refers to the purposeful act of breaking up larger financial transactions into smaller amounts in order to avoid federal reporting requirements. For example, the Bank Secrecy Act requires banks to report any deposits, withdrawals, or transfers of more than $10,000. Read More
Read MoreCleanliness is Next to Godliness for George, Tom, Abe, Alex, Andy, Ulysses, and Ben
In common parlance, money laundering is the process of taking illegally-gained, “dirty” money and making it appear legal or “clean.” Who needs to wash money? A classic case is the drug dealer who’s sitting on a pile of cash but can’t very well explain where he got it from. The same concept, however, applies to other unlawful activity like financial frauds, computer crimes, alien smuggling, Read More
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