Showing posts with label MSB. Show all posts
Showing posts with label MSB. Show all posts

Tuesday, July 2, 2013

BITCOIN MUST BE REGULATED.

FROM THE - JOURNALS of Monte Friesner – Criminal & Intelligence Analyst and Consulaire for WANTED SA
~Contributed & Written by Kenneth Rijock ~

REPORTS SAY BITCOIN HAS REGISTERED AS AN MSB WITH FINCEN


Media reports claim that Bitcoin, the virtual currency, has registered as a money service business, with the Financial Crimes information Center, FinCEN. Assuming that this is true, it may signify that the virtual currency industry is ready to concede that it must be regulated, meaning that banking best practices compliance will be necessary. How exactly will that be accomplished online, I wonder ?One final question; since FinCEN registration must be accomplished within six month of beginning operation, and Bitcoin has been around for much longer than that, will charges of operating an unlicensed MSB be filed, as was done with Rosemont Financial ? The Rosemont case was a nightmare for that company's clients , as they had massive funds seizures, resulting in costly settlements with DOJ.
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Thursday, June 20, 2013

Global Terrorist Group Used Reputation Management Firm.


FROM THE - JOURNALS of Monte Friesner – Criminal & Intelligence Analyst and Consulaire for WANTED SA ~ Contributed & Written by Kenneth Rijock

SOMALI MSB USED REPUTATION MANAGEMENT FIRM TO CONCEAL NEGATIVE INFORMATION


It appears that the use of so-called reputation management firms, to hide negative information from compliance officers, is not limited to individuals looking to open bank accounts. A major money transmitter/money service business in embattled Somalia reportedly used the services to conceal the fact that individuals now imprisoned by the United States at Guantanamó Bay, Cuba were clients.

The MSB, who announced a few months ago that it had entered into a major agreement, with an American bank with offices in the Midwest, to assist in sending remittances to Somalia from the US, has been linked to the designated global terrorist group, Al-Shabaab. Allegedly, the MSB pays a large annual fee to the terrorist organisation, and some of its leaders have accounts there. I am at a total loss as to why a major US financial institution would knowingly partner up with an MSB known for terrorist connections, and why American regulatory agencies have not acted against the bank, and any others that work with that MSB.

 The MSB, though not a licensed bank in Somalia, uses the term "bank" on its account statements; one was published on the Internet, by a whistle blower exposing the fact, in connection with the Al-Shabaab connection. This is a misrepresentation of a material fact, and further reinforces my opinion about the MSBs suitability, for any purpose, for transactions that involve US persons.

The use of a reputation rehabilitation company, by a prominent money service business, to conceal information that would affect compliance decisions, by financial institutions considering a business relationship, or even a single transaction, is disturbing, because it indicates that the use of such services has spread to the financial and corporate world. Readers may want to review my recent article*, on my opinion that the Internet is no longer a valid information source for compliance enquiries, due to the activities of companies which seek to hide the truth about their clients, amidst the confusing fog of multiple Internet postings and websites.

READ MORE ON : www.wantedsa.com