Monday, June 01, 2015

Anti Money Laundering: Rivers of Mysterious Money

South Africans moved billions into Australia in 1980s and 1990s and these days it is the Asians such as Chinese and Malaysians who are pouring black money into antipodean soil ...
Chinese money agree to disagree

It is worth pointing out that the Paris-Based Financial Action Task Force (FATF) on money laundering in April released its report on Australia, which found that Australian residential property is a haven for international money laundering, particularly from China. The report also recommended that Australia implement counter-measures to ensure that real estate agents, lawyers and accountants facilitating real estate transactions are captured by the regulatory net  Illicit funds

"At present, Chinese investors are only permitted to take $US50,000 ($65,413) out of the country. Yet they are regularly paying cash for $1.5 million-plus homes in Sydney and Melbourne.
It is a fair assumption then that most of the money pouring into Australian residential property from China is therefore black money..."
Imposing Money Laundering Regulations might be solution to housing affordability

If only the Treasurer had been invited to Villa De Mare on New Year's Eve, around the corner from local representative Malcolm Turnbull, he would have glimpsed the webs of fabulous wealth and power that had come together on Sydney's night of nights. 
Xu was not at his Point Piper home. He had generously thrown open his doors in his absence. 
Villa del mare Lola Wang Li and the-secretive web of Chinese wealth

Fairfax’s Michael West has called on the federal government to tighten Australia’s anti-money laundering rules in a bid to cool Chinese money flows into Australian real estate:
Stop money laundering so our kids can buy homes

In Sydney Landlords taking advantage and making outrageous sex demands

Goldman lawyer becomes SEC chief of staff McClatchy


Massive data breach compromises personal information of 4 million federal workers
Washington Times, 4/6/15. The Office of Personnel Management confirmed on Thursday that almost four million current and past employees have been affected.
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U.S. Suspects Hackers in China Breached About 4 Million People’s Records, Officials Say - WSJ



South China Sea: tricky times