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Article: Goldman Sold $10.5 Billion of Stocks in Block-Trade Spree

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Goldman Sold $10.5 Billion of Stocks in Block-Trade Spree

Bei Hu, Gillian Tan and Drew Singer,  27 March 2021

(Bloomberg) — Goldman Sachs Group Inc. liquidated $10.5 billion worth of stocks in block trades on Friday, part of an extraordinary spree of selling that erased $35 billion from the values of bellwether stocks ranging from Chinese technology giants to U.S. media conglomerates.

The Wall Street bank sold $6.6 billion worth of shares of Baidu Inc., Tencent Music Entertainment Group and Vipshop Holdings Ltd. before the market opened in the U.S, according to an email to clients seen by Bloomberg News.

That move was followed by the sale of $3.9 billion of shares in ViacomCBS Inc., Discovery Inc., Farfetch Ltd., iQiyi Inc. and GSX Techedu Inc., the email said.

More of the unregistered stock offerings were said to be managed by Morgan Stanley, according to people familiar with the matter, on behalf of one or more undisclosed shareholders. Some of the trades exceeded $1 billion in individual companies, calculations based on Bloomberg data show. Continue reading “Article: Goldman Sold $10.5 Billion of Stocks in Block-Trade Spree”

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Article: A Fidelity Bitcoin ETF Would Be Everyone’s Gain—But Grayscale’s Pain

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A Fidelity Bitcoin ETF Would Be Everyone’s Gain—But Grayscale’s Pain

Jeff John Roberts,  27 March 2021

This time it’s different.

For years, Bitcoin companies have been banging on the SEC’s door in hopes of launching a Bitcoin ETF—only to have the agency reply with a hard no. But now one of the companies at the door is the mighty Fidelity Investments, and that’s likely to be a game changer.

In case you missed it, the Boston-based financial giant dropped paperwork this week to create an ETF (exchange-traded fund) called the Wise Origin Bitcoin Trust—a name some say is derived from the Japanese kanji for Satoshi Nakamoto. If approved, Fidelity’s Bitcoin fund would be traded as shares on public stock exchanges alongside the company’s other ETFs dedicated to bonds, blue-chip stocks and other assets.

If this comes to pass, it would be a huge win not just for Fidelity but for everyone who owns Bitcoin. The approval of a Bitcoin ETF would add another sheen of legitimacy to cryptocurrency and, more importantly, it would lead to a flood of new investment from both retail and institutional clients. All of this would likely cause the price of Bitcoin to moon, as they say. Continue reading “Article: A Fidelity Bitcoin ETF Would Be Everyone’s Gain—But Grayscale’s Pain”

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Article: Shengjin, Former Official Arrested for Alienation of Property

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Shengjin, Former Official Arrested for Alienation of Property

Eduart Halili,  27 March 2021

The head of security in Shengjin Harbor, Agostin Gjini was handcued this Saturday after almost 6 months of investigation, as he is accused of alienation of property. Agostin Gjini is suspected that during the exercise of his duty as head of the Archive and Protocol Sector in the former commune of Shengjin, he falsied documents, alienating a land area on the coast of Shengjin, from the type of sand land to field property.

“Specialists of the Economic and Financial Crime Section in Local Police Directorate of Lezha have executed the security measure ‘Prison arrest’ imposed by the Lezha Judicial District Court for the citizen A. Gj., 56 years old, resident of Lezha Island, for the criminal oense ‘Falsication’ of documents’.

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Article: New Zealand an ‘easy target’ for money launderers

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New Zealand an ‘easy target’ for money launderers

Jenine Colmore-Williams, 27 March 2021

Last week a series of arrests and property seizures across the Auckland region hit the headlines, the culmination of an extensive investigation by the New Zealand Police’s Financial Crime Group into money laundering and related crimes.

Jenine Colmore-Williams is executive director and founder of Dimension GRC, a New Zealand company at the front line of the battle against money laundering. She warns the issue runs far deeper in Aotearoa than many Kiwis realise, and that our celebrated ease of doing business makes us an easy target.

OPINION: Money laundering is the process of making money earned from criminal activities such as fraud, illegal drugs and tax evasion appear to have come from legitimate sources. Most criminal transactions are handled in cash due to its untraceable nature, but as the ill-gotten gains begin to pile up, it can become a liability to those who are accumulating it.

The process of transferring dodgy cash into legitimate finances can involve not just banks but lawyers, accountants, real estate agents, casinos, high-value goods dealers, financial advisers – in fact, every firm in the country through which lumps of money occasionally come and go in the normal course of business. Sounding a bit like an episode of Ozark not our beautiful “clean, green” New Zealand? Continue reading “Article: New Zealand an ‘easy target’ for money launderers”

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Article: Crypto Shadow Banking Explained and Why 12% Yields Are Common

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Crypto Shadow Banking Explained and Why 12% Yields Are Common

Matthew Leising,  27 March 2021

(Bloomberg) — A swathe of shadow banks in the $1.6 trillion cryptocurrency market have figured out how to generate returns of 12% with minimal risk: Lend U.S. dollars to hedge funds so they can buy Bitcoin.

Some of the largest non-bank firms in cryptocurrency including BitGo, BlockFi, Galaxy Digital and Genesis are stepping up to meet investor demand for dollars amid a long-standing weariness by banks to lend to individuals or companies associated with Bitcoin and other digital assets. In this case, they’re lending to hedge funds that need cash to buy Bitcoin for a trade that is almost guaranteed to pay out at annualized returns that have recently hit 20% to 40%.

“The people with all the money — the banks, the brokerages — they’re not in this space yet,” said Jeff Dorman, chief investment officer for Arca Capital Management, which specializes in digital assets. “Everyone wants to borrow dollars, but there’s not enough dollars in the space,” Dorman said. “There is a huge cash shortage.” Continue reading “Article: Crypto Shadow Banking Explained and Why 12% Yields Are Common”

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Article: Money Laundering Might Taint NFTs Too, Prepare For Tighter Controls

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Money Laundering Might Taint NFTs Too, Prepare For Tighter Controls

Simon Chandler,  27 March 2021

While non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are certainly the big thing in crypto at the moment, they aren’t without their problems. Aside from accusations of hype and faddishness, NFTs also raise the familiar and thorny issue of money laundering.

Without much in the way of quantitative proof, detractors have linked the burgeoning NFT market with money laundering, with some people describing them as the “best money laundering method in the cryptocurrency world.”

However, industry players speaking with Cryptonews.com suggested that, while NFTs are open to money launderers, there’s currently nothing concrete to indicate that their use for laundering is significantly worse than it is in the traditional art world, or with other types of crypto. At the same time, they attest that the strict introduction of KYC/AML (know your customer / anti-money laundering) standards will help combat this emerging problem. Continue reading “Article: Money Laundering Might Taint NFTs Too, Prepare For Tighter Controls”

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Article: Renee Figueroa And His Wife Were Sent To Trial For Laundering Money And Assets

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Renee Figueroa And His Wife Were Sent To Trial For Laundering Money And Assets

Aygen Marsh,  27 March 2021

Figueroa is accused of laundering $ 3.7 million of public funds in the presidential administration of the convicted Elias Antonio Saca.

The Third Investigative Court in San Salvador referred former Public Security Minister René Figueroa and his wife, Cecilia Alvarenga de Figueroa, to trial on charges of laundering money and assets.

The judge accepted the opinion in its entirety and all civil and criminal evidence presented by the prosecution and approved the precautionary measures for the accused. The public prosecutor of the Anti-Impunity Group of the Office of the Prosecutor General on the decision said that Figueroa will continue with house arrest and alternative measures to the temporary detention of his wife.

The precautionary measures of a hereditary nature possessed by the defendants, such as freezing financial products and precautionary annotations for properties registered with the National Registry (CNR), have also been approved. Continue reading “Article: Renee Figueroa And His Wife Were Sent To Trial For Laundering Money And Assets”

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Article: California Department of Justice Secures $5.3 Million Settlement from Artichoke Joe’s Casino In the San Francisco Bay Area

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California Department of Justice Secures $5.3 Million Settlement from Artichoke Joe’s Casino In the San Francisco Bay Area

Sierra Sun Times,  27 March 2021

SACRAMENTO – The California Department of Justice (DOJ) on Thurday announced a settlement in which Artichoke Joe’s Casino in San Bruno agreed to pay a penalty of $5.3 million for misleading gambling regulators and violating the Bank Secrecy Act, a federal law intended to combat money laundering. The casino is a 51-table cardroom with the eighth largest gross gambling revenue in the state. After the cardroom failed to timely or accurately report an investigation by the federal Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), DOJ’s Bureau of Gambling Control (Bureau) initiated a license disciplinary proceeding against the casino and its owners. Today’s settlement includes the largest agreed-upon penalty in the history of California gambling regulation.

Under California’s Gambling Control Act of 1998, casinos are required to make timely, full, and true disclosure to gambling regulators. The Bureau determined that Artichoke Joe’s Casino was in violation of the law when it failed to accurately report, reveal, or disclose in a timely manner that FinCEN or any other federal agency was examining the casino with respect to the Bank Secrecy Act and that the casino and FinCEN were in negotiations that could result in the casino’s admission of Bank Secrecy Act violations. Later, as part of the settlement reached with FinCEN, the casino admitted to violations of the Bank Secrecy Act, and the Bureau amended its allegations to include the admission. Continue reading “Article: California Department of Justice Secures $5.3 Million Settlement from Artichoke Joe’s Casino In the San Francisco Bay Area”

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Article: Feds: 2nd Cali Man Laundered $560,000 Stolen From Bergen Man, $285,000 In Gov’t Loan Scheme

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Feds: 2nd Cali Man Laundered $560,000 Stolen From Bergen Man, $285,000 In Gov’t Loan Scheme/strong>

Jerry DeMarco,  27 March 2021

A second California man has been charged in an email scam that cost a Bergen County property owner $560,000 – and there could be more, federal authorities said.

Anthony Debose Hannah, 57, controlled an account where co-conspirator Eric Bullard wired $230,000 of the money, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig said.

Bullard, 59, of Los Angeles had hacked an email account at a law firm representing the victim, then wrote to the client with instructions to wire the $560,000 into an escrow account identified as “Eric’s Commercial LLC,” Honig said. Continue reading “Article: Feds: 2nd Cali Man Laundered $560,000 Stolen From Bergen Man, $285,000 In Gov’t Loan Scheme”

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Article: GameStop Takes $6 Billion Round Trip as Results Shrugged Off

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GameStop Takes $6 Billion Round Trip as Results Shrugged Off

Bailey Lipschultz,27 March 2021

GameStop Corp. is ending the week where it started, after an earnings-related selloff was quickly reversed, with retail investors refusing to let go of their commitment to the stock.

Investors were quick to get over GameStop’s 12th consecutive quarter of slowing sales and management’s decision to not take questions on its earnings call on Tuesday, despite warnings from most Wall Street analysts. After see-sawing to as low as $118.62, the stock was trading near last week’s closing level on Friday. That created a more than $6.4 billion swing in market value from Monday’s intraday high to a bottom on Wednesday.

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Article: FinCEN’s $390 Million case against Capital One – And What it Means for AML Enforcement

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FinCEN’s $390 Million case against Capital One – And What it Means for AML Enforcement

Seetha Ramachandran, Hena Vora,  26 March 2021

As the financial services industry prepares for expanded criminal and civil enforcement under the Bank Secrecy Act (“BSA”) with the passage of the Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2020, FinCEN’s recent case against Capital One shows how FinCEN’s approach to AML enforcement is evolving.

On January 15, 2021, FinCEN assessed a $390 million civil money penalties against Capital One for violations of the BSA related to Capital One’s Check Cashing Group (the “CCG”). CCG is a business unit under Capital One’s commercial bank through which Capital One provides banking services including processing checks and providing customers with armored car cash shipments. In issuing its decision, FinCEN determined that, between 2008 and 2014, Capital One’s CCG failed to report millions of dollars in suspicious transactions. Specifically, FinCEN found that Capital One: failed to maintain an AML program to guard against money laundering as per 31 U.S.C. § 5318(h); failed to file suspicious activity reports (SARs) on suspicious transactions in violation of 31 U.S.C. § 5313; and failed to file currency transaction reports (CTRs) for the CCG in violation of 31 U.S.C. § 5313. Continue reading “Article: FinCEN’s $390 Million case against Capital One – And What it Means for AML Enforcement”

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Article: The Unfinished Business Of Air Ambulance Bills

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The Unfinished Business Of Air Ambulance Bills

Erin C. Fuse Brown, Loren Adler, Karan R. Chhabra, Barak D. Richman, Erin Trish, 26 March 2021

On December 27, 2020, tucked into the year-end coronavirus relief package and spending bill, Congress passed the No Surprises Act, largely ending the practice of surprise out-of-network medical bills. In a win for patients, the law applies to air ambulance operators as well as out-of-network providers and facilities that provide emergency and non-emergency health services. Nevertheless, the law’s consumer protections don’t go far enough to protect patients from the financial risks of an air ambulance transport.

Effective January 1, 2022, the No Surprises Act generally prohibits out-of-network providers in emergencies and at in-network facilities from billing patients for more than their in-network cost-sharing amounts (eliminating patient balance-billing) and sets up a dispute resolution process to determine the amount the patient’s health plan will pay for the out-of-network care. Continue reading “Article: The Unfinished Business Of Air Ambulance Bills”

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Article: These 2 Meme Stocks Won’t Survive the Next Stock Market Crash

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These 2 Meme Stocks Won’t Survive the Next Stock Market Crash

Leo Sun,  26 March 2021

The Reddit-fueled short squeezes of GameStop (NYSE:GME) and other heavily shorted stocks earlier this year thrust the idea of “meme stocks” — equities that get aggressively promoted on social media platforms — into the broader market’s spotlight.

Some of those meme stocks actually have solid underlying businesses that could allow them to resist a market downturn. However, there are plenty of others with businesses that can’t possibly support their frothy valuations. Let’s take a look at two meme stocks that will likely burn their shareholders the next time the market stumbles.

1. Naked Brand
Shares of Naked Brand Group (NASDAQ:NAKD), a New Zealand-based retailer of intimate apparel and swimwear, surged from about $0.07 last October to an all-time high of $3.40 in late January. Nearly everyone who chased that rally and hung on got burned — the stock now trades at about $0.77 per share.

Naked’s rally had nothing to do with its fundamentals. It was identified as a short squeeze target on Reddit, and its name was cited in discussions about “naked shorting” — the illegal practice of shorting a stock without borrowing it first. Those discussions inexplicably evolved into a movement to promote the stock on Reddit, which caused it to rally alongside GameStop and other meme stocks in January.

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Article: Artichoke Joe’s Casino Agrees To Record $5.3 Million Penalty For Misleading Gambling Regulators, Violating Federal Law

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Artichoke Joe’s Casino Agrees To Record $5.3 Million Penalty For Misleading Gambling Regulators, Violating Federal Law

CBSN SF Bay Area,  26 March 2021

SAN BRUNO (AP) — One of California’s more profitable card rooms agreed Thursday to a record $5.3 million penalty for misleading gambling regulators and violating a federal law designed to deter money laundering, the state attorney general’s office said.

Artichoke Joe’s Casino in San Bruno failed to properly report an investigation by the federal Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, leading to the largest agreed-upon penalty in the history of California gambling regulation, officials said.

The state penalty is in addition to a $5 million federal settlement for failing to have an effective anti-money laundering program and failing to report certain suspicious activity between 2009 and 2017, state officials said. That $5 million is also the largest amount assessed against a California card room by federal regulators. Continue reading “Article: Artichoke Joe’s Casino Agrees To Record $5.3 Million Penalty For Misleading Gambling Regulators, Violating Federal Law”

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Article: Investment fraud reports 32% leap as criminals exploit covid-19

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Investment fraud reports 32% leap as criminals exploit covid-19

Mark Battersby,  26 March 2021

Investment scam reports surged by almost a third (32%) during 2020, with losses to these scams increasing 42% to £135.1m, according to a report by trade body UK Finance.

So called ‘authorised’ fraud losses increased 5% in 2020 to £479m as scammers ramped up online activity during the pandemic, its latest Fraud the Facts report stated. Unauthorised fraud losses dropped 5% as lockdown restrictions forced criminals to switch tactics, but were still very high at £784m, the latest Fraud the Facts report also revealed.

It cannot be right that online firms are effectively profiting from fraud, while society as a whole pays the price.”
Impersonation scam cases almost doubled to nearly 40,000 cases during the year.

The shocking figures show why tackling scam activity, particularly online, needs to be prioritised across Government, UK Finance argued in the report.

UK Finance is specifically calling for fraud to be included in the scope of the government’s Online Safety Bill to better protect consumers from these scams.

This would ensure that online platforms such as social media firms, search engines and dating websites take action to address vulnerabilities in their systems that are being exploited by criminals to commit fraud.

Katy Worobec, managing director of economic crime at UK Finance, said: “The banking industry has worked hard throughout the pandemic to protect customers from fraud and to go after the criminals behind it, with over £1.6 billion of fraud stopped in 2020.

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