The term money laundering was first used in the United States in the 1980s. He referred to the income of the drug business, which was converted from illegal money to legal money.
Purposes of money laundering
Money laundering is the substitution of illegal sources of income for fictitious legal ones. To do this, money is carried out through a series of transformations in order to conceal the original sources of their receipt. From the outside, it should seem that the money comes from legal transactions. The "laundered" money can be used in the turnover of the business and in the personal needs of the owner.
The need for money laundering can arise in a number of cases. For example, in the case of the criminal origin of income or the unwillingness to advertise the real source of income, for security reasons or for other reasons. But in most cases, the existence of the concept of “money laundering” is closely related to the shadow economy and the spread of illegal types of entrepreneurial activity.
Money laundering should be distinguished from tax evasion and cashing. In Russia today, cashing operations are more popular than money laundering.
Stages of money laundering
The money laundering process usually involves the following steps:
- initially a crime is committed (for example, corruption, drug and human trafficking, terrorism, fraud, etc.);
- placement - "mixing" the proceeds of criminal activity into the flow of legal commercial funds;
- concealment or obfuscation of traces - money is withdrawn to other accounts, distributed among various assets or withdrawn to other countries;
- integration - the appearance of the legality and legality of the wealth obtained is created, this money is collected on a legal account and invested in an asset.
Money Laundering Methods
There are many ways to launder money today. One of them can be found in the movie "The Diamond Arm", when the proceeds from smuggling were legalized through the discovery of a treasure.
A scheme is often used to “structure” income or artificially split operations into small ones with small amounts. Money is transferred through several channels (banks, post offices, pawnshops) and accumulates in one account.
Also, in money laundering, an extensive network of fictitious enterprises can be used, most of which are registered with nominee founders and with stolen passports. Their accounts accumulate amounts of money, which are then withdrawn to the account of another company.
Common tools for “money laundering” are electronic wallets, securities, bank certificates.
