US DoJ forces Alibaba and Alipay US into a $600 million resolution, exposing how weak platform and payment controls enabled illegal pharmaceutical sales and AML failures

Alibaba Group and AUS Merchant Services, formerly Alipay US, entered a non-prosecution agreement to resolve allegations linked to illegal sales and imports of pharmaceuticals, controlled substances, chemicals and pill presses through Alibaba.com and AliExpress. DOJ says AUS’s AML programme failed to prevent some merchants from using payment and settlement services for illicit activity, while also crediting the companies’ remediation and compliance improvements.