Money laundering seeks to conceal the illegal origin of funds.
Money laundering is the activity carried out to conceal the origin of funds that were obtained through illegal activities. The objective of laundering (also known as laundering ) is for the money to appear as the fruit of a legal economic or financial activity.
Washing is the action and effect of washing , a verb that is linked to cleaning something. The process consists of purifying or removing stains from something, although it can also be developed symbolically (when trying to erase discredit or guilt).
Money , on the other hand, is a medium of exchange that a society accepts for the payment of goods, services and obligations. It consists of bills and coins that serve not only as a medium of exchange, but also as an accounting unit and refuge of value.
Target of money laundering
Whoever launders money, therefore, seeks to legitimize funds from drug trafficking , corruption , tax fraud , smuggling , arms sales or kidnappings , among other activities, so that said money can be inserted and circulate in the financial system. .
Anyone who carries out this money laundering process usually follows a series of steps to make it completely effective: placement , intercalation and integration . Stages in which it is necessary to resort to instruments such as bank drafts, cash, personal checks or cashier's checks.
The creation of front companies is a common resource for money laundering.
Different techniques
When the money is the result of an illicit activity, it is not declared before the Treasury or other state agency, since such a declaration would require confessing the illegal origin. The criminal, who thus has no justification to explain his income or standard of living, proceeds to launder the assets so that they enter the legal system.
There are multiple techniques used for money laundering, such as the creation of front companies or the purchase of goods in cash .
Famous money laundering cases
There are many cases of money laundering that have occurred throughout history in different corners of the world. Among those we would have to highlight the following:
- In which Arthur Budovsky , founder of Liberty Reserve , was involved. It has been considered the most serious and extensive case of all because people from up to seventeen different countries participated in it and because the amount laundered amounted to a whopping 6 billion dollars.
- In Spain in recent years there have been several cases, some already closed and others that continue to be investigated, such as Operation Emperor and the Nóos Case , in which the sister of the current monarch, Infanta Cristina , has been implicated.