Anti-Money Laundering in the Trump-Vance Administration
This week’s blog entry continues to preview what areas of white-collar defense the incoming Trump administration might prioritize. This week will focus on anti-money laundering. Similar to the previous entry on False Claims Act enforcement, we will look to how the previous Trump administration acted with respect to anti-money laundering in an effort to discern how the upcoming Trump administration might prioritize money-laundering enforcement in the next four years.
Anti-Money Laundering in the Previous Trump Administration
Going into the previous Trump administration in 2017, many predicted that the federal government would not ease up on money-laundering enforcement.(1) This prediction was partly based on candidate Trump’s promise to go after drug cartels and terrorist organizations—both of whom are frequently prosecuted for money-laundering violations. Those predictions bore out as the Trump 45 administration aggressively went after money laundering for drug cartels and terrorist groups.(2) In fact, the prior Trump administration not only went after those groups but continued enforcing the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network’s (FinCEN) “Customer Due Diligence” rule, which requires bank to report on beneficial owners of accounts.(3) In addition, the prior Trump administration went after other areas of money laundering, including casino operations and requiring title insurers to report on cash buyers of upscale properties.(4) Thus, under the previous Trump administration, anti-money laundering enforcement remained a top priority.
What to Expect in the Next Trump Administration
Similar to the 2016 Trump campaign, President-Elect Trump spent a lot of time in his campaign promising to go after drug cartels and terrorist groups. In December 2023, then-candidate Trump released a statement in which he declared war on drug cartels.(5) Part of President-Elect Trump’s agenda includes designating major drug cartels as terrorist organizations; cutting off cartel access to the global financial system; and cooperation with foreign governments to dismantle cartels and expose bribery and corruption protecting those cartel networks.(6) Given the track record of the prior Trump administration and the campaign promises from President-Elect Trump, we can expect that money-laundering enforcement will be a priority for the forthcoming Trump administration.
The Suarez Law Firm has experience successfully defending clients investigated for and accused of money laundering as well as assisting clients with anti-money laundering compliance and efforts. If you are being investigated for or charged with money laundering or would like assistance with your company’s anti-money laundering compliance, contact our office today to schedule your consultation.
