Mar 05, 2025
Treasury Department won’t enforce beneficial ownership rule under the Corporate Transparency Act
The rule, which was held up in court for the last few months, would require foreign and domestic companies to disclose their true owners.
FinCEN Files
Browse the ICIJ’s complete collection of articles and commentary on the FinCEN Files investigation.
Jan 28, 2025
US company database remains on hold, despite Supreme Court decision
Treasury had to issue a note clarifying that, despite a court victory last week, another legal challenge continued to block progress on a key corporate transparency reform.
Oct 18, 2024
TD Bank hit with $3B penalty in U.S. money laundering settlement
Attorney General Merrick Garland said the Canada-based bank “created an environment that allowed financial crime to flourish.”
Aug 14, 2024
Former BVI premier sentenced to 11 years in prison for cocaine-trafficking conspiracy
Two years before his arrest in Miami, Andrew Alturo Fahie pledged to pull back the curtain on the islands' notoriously secretive financial services industry.
Jun 03, 2024
Whistleblower accuses US of ignoring evidence Standard Chartered Bank served suspicious Iranian clients
A former SCB banker claims the U.S. government misled a federal court about his role in exposing the bank’s dealings with sanctioned Iranian entities and international "terror groups" after the bank had pledged to stop.
May 24, 2024
Report flags over $2.6B laundered through US commercial real estate
Researchers cited ICIJ’s 2020 investigation into a Ukrainian oligarch’s sprawling property portfolio among 25 cases of allegedly ill-gotten funds being funneled into the sector.
Feb 27, 2024
EU to clamp down on dirty money with new agency based in Germany
The watchdog, set to launch in 2025, will lead a European push to curb illicit financial flows.
Jan 17, 2024
New US company ownership database faces continued political attacks weeks after launch
Advocates have warned that criticism and challenges from business groups and their political allies are sowing confusion and fear among business owners.
Oct 17, 2023
UK authorities criticized for failing to prosecute financial crime enablers and rich tax cheats
A decade of fresh data shows only a handful of cases were brought against financiers for ignoring money laundering red flags, while few “wealthy” people faced criminal consequences for tax fraud last year, according to new reports.
Oct 12, 2023
US Treasury Department removes ‘escape hatch’ for criminals from beneficial ownership reporting form
The draft disclosure form — panned by lawmakers and transparency advocates alike — previously included options for entities to check “unknown” when reporting ownership information to FinCEN.
Sep 26, 2023
Money-laundering criminals are adapting to new technology faster than authorities can keep up, EU report says
A new Europol report has found that 70% of criminal enterprises are utilizing money laundering techniques to hide wealth and garner assets, outpacing authorities who are struggling to uncover their crimes.
Sep 07, 2023
Ukrainian oligarch sanctioned following the FinCEN Files investigation arrested in Ukraine
The pretrial detention of banking and media tycoon Ihor Kolomoisky comes as Ukraine pledges to root out corruption.
Aug 17, 2023
As US company registry stalls, New York forges its own path toward transparency
A new state bill modeled on the federal Corporate Transparency Act aims to expose company owners and share the information in a publicly searchable database.
Jul 20, 2023
New FinCEN head appointed as concerns grow over stalled US company registry
The incoming director of the federal financial crimes unit faces an uphill battle to deliver reforms to thwart illicit money flows amid warnings the agency’s corporate ownership database is not fit for purpose.
Jun 26, 2023
UK government accused of avoiding dirty money checks on political donations despite scandals
Experts warn loopholes that allow suspect donations to flow into politics put the country’s elections at risk of foreign inference.
Apr 11, 2023
U.S. Treasury faces a wave of criticism over faltering push to unmask anonymous companies and track dirty money
Transparency activists warn that delays to U.S. reforms designed to thwart illicit money flows have grave global implications.
Feb 22, 2023
Proposed rule would render US company registry ‘effectively useless,’ bankers warn
The American Bankers Association’s criticism is the latest setback for the U.S. Treasury as it attempts to set up a company ownership database.
Nov 16, 2022
US sanctions financial network and luxury planes linked to Russian oligarch Suleiman Kerimov
An ICIJ investigation detailed how Swiss businessman Alexander Studhalter was at the center of a vast web of shell companies tied to Kerimov that moved billions via American banks.
Sep 20, 2022
‘All journalists should be investigators at heart’
ICIJ member Golden Matonga shares stories of exposing government corruption and doing his part to ensure democracy endures in Malawi.
Sep 20, 2022
New US company owner database ‘taking way too long’ to implement, experts warn
After ICIJ’s FinCEN Files investigation, transparency advocates cheered a new law mandating a beneficial ownership register in the U.S. Two years later, experts are expressing serious concerns.
May 03, 2022
Russia-focused stories from ICIJ’s Pandora Papers partners and more
ICIJ's media partners have used the Pandora Papers, FinCEN Files and Paradise and Panama Papers to uncover numerous secret networks of Russian oligarchs, businesspeople and more.
Apr 29, 2022
As US pledges renewed fight against dirty money, head of financial crime agency says funding shortfalls have caused delays
In testimony, FinCEN's acting chief says ‘outmatched’ team is falling behind on policing cryptocurrency and implementing major anti-money laundering law.
Apr 20, 2022
ICIJ’s guide to Russian wealth hidden offshore
What’s an oligarch? How do sanctions work? What have ICIJ investigations revealed about Vladimir Putin and his money? We answer frequently asked questions about Russia and offshore finance.
Apr 19, 2022
US seeks to seize superyacht linked to Russian oligarch after its surprise arrival in Fiji
The Amadea, believed to be owned by sanctioned gold tycoon Suleiman Kerimov, is the latest target in an international search for luxury vessels linked to close allies of Vladimir Putin.
Apr 11, 2022
An oligarch’s nephew, a tattoo artist and $700 million in secret transfers traced to a Putin ally
A web of shell companies tied to Suleiman Kerimov and a flawed bank warning system point to challenges Western governments face in the hunt for Kremlin-linked money.