Money laundering: We are all under general suspicion
The EU is taking a new hurdle to further expand its surveillance apparatus. With a new directive on money laundering, cash payments over 10,000 euros will no longer be possible. A separate super-authority will be able to monitor directly and impose heavy fines. And every transaction involving a little more money will be placed under general suspicion. For that, you need many thousands of assistants. So you oblige by law tax advisors, notaries, business consultants, goldsmiths, asset managers and real estate agents - in other words, all those who come into contact with people who buy or sell something of value for any reason. They must report the slightest suspicion and also urge their employees to join in the game. Otherwise, hefty fines and public ostracism await.
When we think of money laundering in the EU, what comes to mind? Eva Kaili, former Vice-President of the European Parliament, who is now sitting at home with an ankle bracelet? Marc Tarabella, a Belgian MEP who, like ex-parliamentarian and trade unionist Pier Antonio Panzeri, shares the same fate? Luca Visentini, who is at liberty but has lost his job as General Secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation?
The Commission President finds the corruption affair in the EU Parliament "really upsetting and very, very painful". Parliament President Roberta Metsola announced a few days ago that MEPs would not be allowed to act as lobbyists for MEPs for six months after leaving the European Parliament.
Perhaps a much more important case comes to mind, the Pfizer contract, which was negotiated by Ursula von der Leyen personally and outside of any proceedings. Here, however, the mills of justice grind very slowly, because after all, Ms von der Leyen has to deal with money laundering in the EU, but not with her own contribution to it.
Full monitoring
Because money is basically laundered by others, for example Russian oligarchs, who are looking for loopholes because of the sanctions and thus undermine the values of the EU. However, vigorous action is being taken against this, with an EU action plan [1] to combat money laundering and terrorist financing. In December 2022, the Council adopted its position on an anti-money laundering regulation and a new directive (AMLD6).
Zbyněk Stanjura, Czech Minister of Finance and host of the Council at the time, said: "Large cash payments of more than €10 000 will no longer be possible. Trying to remain anonymous when buying or selling crypto assets will become much more difficult. It will no longer be possible to hide behind multiple layers of ownership of companies. It will even become difficult to launder dirty money through jewellers or goldsmiths."[2]
Jewellers, watchmakers and goldsmiths, banks, asset managers and crypto-assets, real estate agents and, in the future, professional football clubs - they will all be obliged to verify the identity of their customers and to determine the beneficial owners. This has also been the case for lawyers, notaries and management consultants for some time.
By limiting high cash payments, the EU thus wants to make it more difficult for "criminals to launder dirty money". And: The member states are to collect and provide more information in the future. This should give the competent authorities the possibility to access transparency register entries, bank accounts, land register entries or real estate registers. For certain goods that are particularly sensitive to money laundering, additional information on their owners is to be collected and made available. This is to affect in particular high-priced goods such as yachts, aircraft and cars worth EUR 200,000 as well as goods stored in free zones. Full transparency - that's what the EU elite is demanding, just not for themselves!
At the end of March, the European Parliament adopted its position on the EU money laundering package. Now the European Commission, the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union are negotiating a final version of the legislative texts.
At the slightest suspicion - report it!
A new EU anti-money laundering authority will monitor compliance and identify existing money laundering risks inside and outside the EU. This anti-money laundering authority (AMLA) will directly supervise certain high-risk credit and financial institutions. In the event of violations, it can impose sanctions (in particular fines of several million euros). The EU has not yet decided on the seat of the authority.[3]
In February, the Hessian Ministry of Finance announced that Frankfurt am Main is officially applying to be the seat of this AMLA and has launched its own website for this purpose.[4]
In addition to testimonials from German politicians, this website also features favourable words from J.P. Morgan S.E., Goldman Sachs and UBS. A decision is to be made this year.
Money is always laundered by others, especially if they come from "higher-risk third countries", from Afghanistan to the United Arab Emirates. Bosnia and Herzegovina, by the way, is no longer on the list since the country has candidate country status. Money launderers must be closely tracked, traced and stopped. This requires full monitoring.
Since the EU with its institutions cannot manage this, and the states for their part cannot either, they delegate the supervision downwards. To tax advisors, notaries, business consultants, goldsmiths, asset managers and real estate agents - in other words, to all those who come into contact with people who buy or sell something of value for any reason. All these people must now put their clients under general suspicion, check and listen to them, make dossiers on them, report the slightest suspicion and also urge their employees to join in this game. If they do not do this, they can expect - for example as a lawyer in Austria - a fine of up to 45,000 euros, in serious cases up to 1 million euros, as well as publication of your conviction for a period of at least 5 years.
The EU Action Plan to combat money laundering and terrorist financing shows us three things:
On the one hand, it is another massive encroachment of the technostructure on the sovereignty of the states. The financial industry - supported by the ECB and the Commission - turns the states into compliant agents of its own power and money interests. Secondly, external events such as terrorist attacks or financial scandals are used as an opportunity to tighten the totalitarian surveillance system over the citizens. Thirdly, however, it is also apparent that all these activities are further weakening the economic area of the EU. The EU institutions pretend that they are fighting money laundering and terrorist financing to protect EU citizens and the EU financial system. The opposite is the case. The EU states are becoming increasingly unattractive as economic and financial centres. With the planned introduction of the digital currency, the work of destruction would then be as good as complete.
This analysis was first published in: Le Courrier des Stratèges on April 21st, 2023
[1] https://www.consilium.europa.eu/fr/policies/fight-against-terrorism/fight-against-terrorist-financin...
[2] https://www.consilium.europa.eu/fr/press/press-releases/2022/12/07/anti-money-laundering-council-agr...
[3] https://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/BRIE/2022/733645/EPRS_BRI(2022)733645_EN.pdf
[4] https://www.amla-frankfurt.eu/amla/EN/Home/home.html