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AUSTRAC opens enrolment for newly regulated ‘tranche 2’ professions, marking a key step in expanding the AML/CTF regime, with enrolment from 31 March 2026 and full compliance required by 1 July 2026

March 31, 2026

The reforms will expand AUSTRAC’s oversight from 19,000 to nearly 100,000 businesses, marking the most significant overhaul in over 20 years and aiming to close long-standing gaps exploited by criminals, particularly in financial and property transactions. Newly covered businesses will be required to implement AML/CTF programs, customer due diligence, suspicious matter reporting, and record-keeping, while existing entities must provide enhanced…

AUSTRAC highlights ECDD as a key tool for crypto ATM providers to detect suspicious activity, identify high-risk customers, and act swiftly against ML and scams

March 30, 2026

Since September 2025, crypto ATM providers have been subject to enhanced regulatory conditions—including transaction limits, mandatory scam warnings, and targeted ECDD triggers—significantly strengthening their ability to detect and disrupt financial crime; these measures are enabling providers to identify complex and high-risk transaction patterns, verify source of funds, and take early action, with real case examples revealing large cash transactions, structuring behaviour, and potential money laundering leading to account closures, suspicious matter reports, and referrals to law…

OCCRP reveals a billion-dollar scheme tied to Taiwanese organised crime, where networks laundered over $1B through Macau casinos using recruited money mules” to exploit credit card systems

March 24, 2026

Individuals were recruited to artificially inflate credit limits, purchase large volumes of casino chips, and then cash them out, effectively transforming illicit proceeds into seemingly legitimate gambling winnings; this typology reflects classic placement and layering stages of ML, exploiting weaknesses in casino AML controls, customer due diligence, and cross-border transaction monitoring, while also raising concerns around complicit or negligent financial…

MAS partners with industry under Project MindForge to launch a practical AI Risk Management Toolkit, helping FIs turn principles into action and safely harness advanced AI while driving innovation

March 20, 2026

Developed under Project MindForge with a consortium of 24 financial institutions and industry partners, the toolkit provides practical guidance for managing risks across traditional AI, generative AI and emerging agentic systems, including an operational handbook and real-world case studies. MAS also plans to establish an industry workgroup to update the toolkit and promote knowledge-sharing, reinforcing supervisory expectations on governance, risk assessment and lifecycle controls to ensure responsible AI adoption in financial services…

UAE dismantles a Hezbollah- and Iran-linked network that used front companies for ML and TF, underscoring its zero-tolerance stance on threats to financial integrity and national security

March 20, 2026

Authorities revealed that the group coordinated with external actors, exploited legitimate business structures, and attempted to infiltrate the financial system to move and disguise funds linked to sanctioned entities. The crackdown highlights the UAE’s intensified efforts to combat financial crime and terrorism financing, with officials reaffirming a zero-tolerance approach and warning that any attempts to undermine national security or financial integrity will be met with strict enforcement…

FINTRAC revokes 23 crypto MSBs registrations in a major crackdown on non-compliant exchanges, ATMs, and foreign operators to tighten anti-money-laundering and counter-terrorist financing controls

March 18, 2026

The action targets firms that failed to comply with regulatory obligations, including responding to information requests, maintaining up-to-date records, and meeting registration requirements. The move affects crypto exchanges, ATMs, and foreign operators, highlighting the government’s intensified efforts to curb illicit finance in the rapidly growing digital asset sector and signal stricter enforcement for businesses that fail to adhere to AML and counter-terrorist…

HKMA publishes a Thematic Review of Sanctions Screening Systems, highlighting banks’ strengths, best practices, exposing gaps, and setting standards to boost anti-fraud, AML, & FC defences

March 16, 2026

It highlights areas where systems are performing well, identifies common deficiencies, and shares good practices for strengthening controls. The guidance sets clear regulatory expectations for maintaining, monitoring, and enhancing sanctions screening processes, while also signaling follow-up supervisory actions where improvements are needed. This review forms part of the HKMA’s broader efforts to reinforce anti-fraud, anti-money laundering, and financial crime controls in collaboration with banks and law enforcement…

Cayman Islands confirms its beneficial ownership register will remain accessible only to those with a legitimate interest, rejecting calls for full public access

March 13, 2026

The register is a key tool for combating money laundering, tax evasion, and financial crime, and access is limited to authorities, regulators, and financial institutions performing due diligence. Parliament also updated fees for accessing the register, including annual and single-search charges, while the Premier emphasized that this approach keeps Cayman ahead of international standards, balancing transparency with privacy and protecting the jurisdiction’s credibility in the global financial system…

AUSTRAC CEO warns the gambling sector remains highly vulnerable to sophisticated ML, urging firms to move beyond box-ticking compliance, fix systemic control failures, and brace for tougher, risk-based enforcement

March 12, 2026

AUSTRAC warns in its “Regulating the Game” speech that the gambling sector remains highly exposed to money laundering risks and must move beyond box-ticking compliance, as CEO Brendan Thomas calls for stronger leadership, robust risk assessments, and effective AML/CTF controls, stressing that firms must take genuine responsibility for preventing criminal exploitation while preparing for stricter enforcement and a more proactive, risk-based regulatory approach under upcoming reforms…

GASA’s Director, in the podcast “Fighting Asia’s Scam Compounds”, reveals the surge of organised scam compounds and calls for urgent global action to dismantle these sophisticated cyber fraud networks

March 10, 2026

He explains how these “scam compounds” operate like mini criminal hubs, orchestrating online fraud, romance scams, and identity theft at scale. The episode highlights the huge economic and social impact of these scams, the exploitation of workers and victims, and the complex international networks involved. Mueller stresses the need for cross-border cooperation among governments, law enforcement, and private sector platforms, as well as public awareness, to disrupt these operations and protect consumers from increasingly sophisticated cyber-enabled fraud…

Singapore Authorities crack down on fund management firm – Capital Asia Investments, exposing major AML failures and alleged links to a global money laundering network, with over S$160M seized

March 9, 2026

The probe centres on suspected money laundering and failures to comply with anti-money laundering (AML) and regulatory obligations, with regulators identifying serious control weaknesses in the company’s compliance framework. Investigations were triggered by financial intelligence linking the firm and related entities to a transnational money laundering network, with suspected proceeds originating from overseas organised crime, including scams…

Canada’s Durham Regional Police reveals that Project Fletcher has resulted in 8 arrests in a $3M payroll‑diversion and money‑laundering fraud scheme, with 5 suspects still at large

March 5, 2026

Investigators allege a company operations manager orchestrated a scheme lasting more than 15 years that diverted employee wages and submitted fake subcontractor invoices, defrauding a Durham Region business of over CAD $3 million between 2015 and 2021 alone. A forensic audit uncovered about 270 fraudulent cheques routed through 22 bank accounts, with proceeds laundered through cheque-cashing services, multiple financial institutions and international transfers; the probe—supported by FINTRAC and forensic accountants…

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