WASHINGTON–U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA) announced that he has secured the inclusion of $2 million in Trade Based Money Laundering (TBML) risk assessment funding in the Senate FY 2020 Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Committee report. If passed, the $2 million will fund a risk assessment conducted through FinCEN via an external vendor to analyze the threat TBML poses on our national security.
TBML encompasses cartels and terrorist organizations’ hijacking international trade networks to transfer funds across international borders, thus circumventing traditional, monitored banking systems.
“Trade-based money laundering is America’s biggest national security threat that almost no one is paying attention to. It links together drug trafficking, human trafficking, terrorism, Hezbollah, and dangerous counterfeit products,” said Dr. Cassidy. “In order to solve this crisis, we need to fully analyze the threat it poses to our nation. This begins the process.”
Specific language from the report on the risk assessment funding can be found here.
This week, Cassidy spoke on a panel of experts on TBML to elevate the issue into the national conversation, speaking to public and private officials committed to solving this national security crisis.
Cassidy released a white paper addressing TBML as a top national security concern in September. The white paper outlined TBML as a threat which ties together drug trafficking, terrorism, and dangerous counterfeit consumer products.
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