Sep ’22 – Nov ’22

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Issue: Vol. 21 No. 4

Featured

From the Editor

Civilizations: From the Greeks to the Renaissance to Web3

When I attended college, the university required every student to take two courses in world civilization to graduate. Part one covered history up to 1500 and part two covered history post-1500. Needless to say, I gained a greater appreciation for history and I learned that each civilization, peoples or culture made significant contributions to the complicated web that would become the future.

A Message from the Director of Editorial Content

Time to Come Together on Crypto Regulation

Despite the failures of several cryptocurrency exchanges last spring, including several platforms dedicated to creating or trading stablecoin, resistance to reasonable regulatory oversight remains strong. The push against regulation continues even as institutions and wealthy individuals have begun buying crypto and traditional financial institutions have cautiously committed to offering cryptocurrency trading or custody.


Inside this Edition

Home Alone? Never, With Transaction Monitoring

You are alone late at night and there is a knock at the door—picture Kevin from “Home Alone.” Do you answer it right away? No, you move slowly to the door and look through the peephole or on your phone to ensure that you are safe and that a friend is on the other side.


Fintechs: The Evolution of Traditional AML

The financial technology (fintech) industry is growing exponentially throughout the world as it assists consumers in saving and transacting in an aggressively evolving digital world. Recent discussions on fintech have become extremely popular due to the potential impact it has on the entire financial system.


Key Challenges in the KYC Space and How to Address Them

The know your customer (KYC) process is perhaps the most critical aspect of anti-money laundering (AML) compliance, as it enables all other facets of AML, including transaction monitoring, suspicious activity report filings and sanctions screening. Indeed, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) has deemed KYC’s alter ego, customer due diligence (CDD), the “Fifth Pillar” of AML compliance and fundamental to a satisfactory AML program.


Walking Into Webs: AML and the Metaverse

As the famous and often cited Shakespeare quote goes, “What’s in a name…?” A name can give purpose, form the basis of uniqueness or, in some cases, even polarize. However, sometimes, a name is just a name, nothing more. This appears to be the debate surrounding some technologically inclined names that have risen to prominence in the post-pandemic era.


Measuring the Effectiveness of Your AML Program

Compliance practitioners have long struggled with the notion of an effective compliance program. What does it mean to be “effective”? In this struggle, many find out when it is too late—through an audit, examination or enforcement order. This question is not only for the compliance officer but also for management and the board of directors, who should understand the compliance risks pertinent to their business and the efforts made to mitigate those risks.


U.S. Department of the Treasury Reports on AML in the Art Market

In 2020, the U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Government Affairs commissioned an investigation that was elaborated in “The Art Industry and U.S. Policies that Undermine Sanctions,” which concludes the art market to be the largest legal, unregulated U.S. market.