Stack – Financial Treason & Crime

Mary-Alice Stack, 20 May 2021

The value of the UK art market is estimated at c.£10 billion per annum and represents 20% of global art trade. The size of our market share (second only to the USA, alongside China) has been long recognised as a key strength of the UK’s creative economy. But the Government’s latest National Risk Assessment from December 2020 puts it at high risk of money laundering. But what exactly is money laundering, and how does it impact on the art market?

Money laundering is the process by which the financial proceeds of criminal activity are dealt with in a way that makes those funds appear lawful. At its most basic, this can happen when criminals buy art with dirty money then resell it – or use it as collateral for a loan. Continue reading “Article: New obligations to protect UK’s art market from money laundering”

03/10/202005/25/2020

Article: It’s a ‘Swimming Naked’ Moment: The Financial System Has a Real Test

Article - Media

It’s a ‘Swimming Naked’ Moment: The Financial System Has a Real Test

James B. Stewart

New York Times, 10 March 2020

The investor Warren Buffett once gave a famous warning: “It’s only when the tide goes out that you learn who’s been swimming naked.”

The tide has just gone out again, and clues to who’s been swimming naked have begun to emerge.

Mr. Buffett first made that comment in 1992, after Hurricane Andrew exposed the inadequacies of the insurance industry, to describe the rosy appearances that can mask financial recklessness until the good times end.

Read full article.