The Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2020 (AMLA) promises to overhaul U.S. anti-money laundering laws. Further, AMLA establishes a whistleblower reward program that targets money laundering schemes. More specifically, the program pays rewards to anonymous whistleblowers who report significant money laundering violations through a lawyer. The whistleblower program runs through the Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). Additionally, the law creates a private right of action for whistleblowers who suffer retaliation for reporting money laundering violations. The AMLA whistleblower program mirrors the successful Dodd-Frank SEC and CFTC whistleblower programs. These anonymous whistleblower programs help the United States detect illegal conduct and recover billions of dollars. For more information on AMLA Whistleblower Rewards, please go to the following web pages: Money Laundering Whistleblower Lawyer and International Bank Secrecy Act Whistleblower Lawyer.
AMLA Whistleblower Rewards Target Shell Companies
AMLA targets businesses that act as shell companies or fronts for those conducting illicit activities. Further, the new law requires companies, including foreign entities registered to do business in the U.S. to disclose their true, beneficial owners to the U.S. Department of the Treasury (Treasury) at the time the company is formed and when ownership changes. More specifically, AMLA establishes an improved reporting system relating to beneficial ownership information. The law also imposes tough new penalties on those convicted of serious Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) violations and repeated BSA violations. These regulations also require more coordination and communication among financial institutions, regulators, and law enforcement to identify suspicious financial activities. AMLA also expands the BSA to safeguard national security and imposes stronger due diligence requirements.
Additionally, AMLA expands anonymous whistleblower reward powers to FinCEN thereby encouraging financial professionals to expose large scale money laundering schemes. These AMLA whistleblower rewards target brokers, financial institutions, and other large corporations that are violating the Bank Secrecy Act and other money laundering laws. Further, these AMLA rewards provide strong whistleblower protections to anonymous whistleblowers who expose schemes to launder money through shell corporations into the United States financial system.
AMLA Whistleblower Rewards Are Similar to SEC Whistleblower Rewards and CFTC Whistleblower Rewards
AMLA closes enforcement gaps left by existing whistleblower programs at the SEC and CFTC. More specifically, AMLA fills jurisdictional limits by specifically targeting money laundering violations. Prior whistleblower reward laws target market manipulation schemes and only some types of money laundering schemes. The AMLA whistleblower program also improves communications and oversight between government agencies in combating money laundering and terrorism financing. Like the SEC and CFTC whistleblower programs, FinCEN awards only whistleblowers whose tips lead to successful enforcement actions and the monetary sanctions exceed $1 million. Further, like the SEC and CFTC programs, a successful tipster receives up to 30% of the monetary penalties collected in an enforcement action brought by the Treasury or the attorney general. The law also provides tipsters protection against retaliation from employers, including demotion, suspension and industry blacklisting. For more specific information on AMLA rewards and protections, please contact an AMLA Whistleblower Reward Lawyer.
All three reward programs allow anonymous whistleblowers to report illegal conduct through a whistleblower lawyer and claim rewards. In fact, this whistleblower protection encourages many financial professionals with specialized knowledge of significant fraud to anonymously report crimes. To date, the SEC whistleblower program has awarded over $731 million to 123 individuals and has recovered more than $2.7 billion in total monetary sanctions.
How Does AMLA Help FinCEN Identify Money Laundering Schemes and Shell Companies?
AMLA helps FinCEN identify hard to detect money laundering schemes and shell companies in several ways. First, AMLA establishes new requirements to identify true beneficial owners of investment and bank accounts. These requirements help identify shell companies and criminals using shell companies to hide their identifies. Second, this law provides financial incentives to individuals with original knowledge of money laundering schemes to report the schemes. Third, this law creates whistleblower protections that protect whistleblower identities and whistleblowers from retaliation. Fourth, the new law gives FinCEN significantly more power and resources to work with other agencies to stop money laundering. Together, these new tools should help identify and shut down large money laundering schemes.
More Information on AMLA Whistleblower Rewards
For more information on AMLA Whistleblower Rewards, please go to the following web pages: Money Laundering Whistleblower Lawyer and International Bank Secrecy Act Whistleblower Lawyer.
