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Money laundering听costs the British economy roughly 拢37 billion each year听补苍诲听颈蝉听a significant issue across the world.听

Its听prevalence is听largely听due to the fact that听there are multiple different听methods听of doing it,听and these听are becoming听increasingly听sophisticated.听

As such, anti-money laundering specialist,听SmartSearch, has听revealed听the听most听common听methods听to听launder money,听using practical examples, to help听you spot signs of suspicious behaviour and听safeguard against similar cases听occurring听in the future.听听

1)听Offshore听accounts听

Criminals听handling money obtained from illegal activities can often try听to听disguise the movement of their funds by using accounts overseas. These accounts are usually听in countries where bank secrecy laws are very strict,听补苍诲听the source and details of the transactions are not easily available.听听

The听multiple financial institutions听or non-trading anonymous shell companies听will often take money without听disclosure of听its听origins听making it听an appetising prospect for those looking听to conceal the true source of funds.听听

BBC TV drama McMafia, in which an organised crime gang used a corrupt politician to keep moving money around the world, using shell companies to make the money appear legitimate,听outlines the听real-life听issue of how hard it 颈蝉听for governments听to detect听and police financial fraud.听听

A keyway to spot signs of this is when money is moved to an account, or听a number of听different accounts, of which details of who holds the account is withheld or unknown. Another warning sign would be if foreign nationals or overseas residents begin instructing businesses despite the company having no affiliation to that country.听

2)听Smurfing听

When moving large sums of听ill-gotten听money, a听common听method听of avoiding detection听is to break up the funds and deposit it in smaller chunks from multiple different places, so as not to arouse suspicion from banks.听This technique is called 鈥榮murfing鈥�.听

Criminal networks can provide different legitimate companies or individuals to make these deposits to raise the appearance of legitimacy and make it harder for听illicit activity to be detected.听

In popular Netflix show Breaking Bad, chemistry teach turned methamphetamine听producer Walter White uses his son鈥檚 charity page to clean his drug money through the appearance of many,听small, anonymous听charitable donations, something that appears alarmingly easy to do without听being caught.听

In terms of spotting this type of money laundering, keeping a close eye on bank transactions is key. If there are a high number of听transactions for unusual and irregular sources from your usual cash flow, it鈥檚 possible this is an attempt to mask an illegal stream of income.听听

3)听Money Mules听

A money mule is an individual who takes听commission to manage and move illegal money for听criminals. This could be because the criminals are听looking to hide their true wealth to avoid tax, or simply to legitimate funds obtained by illicit听activity.听听

Money mules can be听one person,听with an extensive knowledge of the financial and banking world听to move and invest funds discretely, often making it with legal income from different business streams, or younger, more financially听vulnerable,听people looking to make quick cash by taking a cut of the money they transfer between accounts.听

A classic example of this is in听the听Oscar award–winning film Shawshank Redemption,听where convicted former banker Andy Dufresne laundered money over a long period for the prison warden to help him avoid paying tax, something听that听wasn鈥檛 detected until it was too late.听

A sure-fire way to detect a money mule is someone who appears to suddenly become overly secretive of their activity when it comes to managing company finances, combined with a sudden upturn in extra cash or spending power. This same behaviour would be showcased by younger individuals moving money on the streets.听听

4)听Trade-based laundering听

In order to听clean dirty money, criminals听sometimes听launder their money听using a legitimate business as a front to normalise their cash flow and avoid detection.听听

Exaggerating operating costs, such as renovations to premises, and adjusting prices听for goods and services听in听invoices听are听common听ways听to be able to gradually inject illegally obtained money into the revenue streams of legitimate businesses.听

In听TV听drama Ozark, financial adviser Marty听Byrde听does exactly this to conceal millions of dollars of drug money for the Mexican cartel. He buys two businesses with听huge operating costs, both in need of a facelift,听and uses them to funnel money into the banking system to be processed and听legalised, highlighting how someone with extensive knowledge of the banking world can get away with听consistently committing financial crimes.听

Red flags to arouse suspicion when it comes to TBML is discrepancies around price, product quantities and quality of goods when it comes to looking at company accounts and invoices. If something has significantly changed suddenly or the numbers don鈥檛 add up, it could be a sign of foul play.听

John Dobson, CEO听at听SmartSearch, commented:听听听听 鈥淭here is no doubt that money laundering continues to plague the financial world, with criminals using听increasingly diverse and complex听methods to disguise their听ill-gotten听gains.听Such techniques听are becoming more and more difficult to uncover for law enforcement and governments around the world.听

鈥淭V听shows听and films that focus on听organised crime often have听money laundering at听their听heart and we can see from some classic and extremely gripping stories how criminals can continue to launder huge sums of money and avoid detection for long periods. Sometimes they鈥檙e even听able to adapt their approach听while听on the听run to stay ahead of the law.听

鈥淎lthough such听high-profile听cases perhaps听don鈥檛听play out quite as publicly in real life, some of these fictitious storylines certainly underline very real concerns听about听the evolution of money laundering, which is only set to intensify with us moving into a more digitised world.听

鈥淚t is more important than ever that we utilise robust anti-money laundering measures.听Stringent ID checks go a long way to safeguarding businesses and individuals against corruption and crime, and we expect the demand to听continue rising听in this space moving forward.鈥�听