The US Department of Treasury’s watchdog, Financial Crimes EnforcementNetwork (FinCEN), released a revelatory report that exposed the involvementof at least 44 Indian banks in money laundering of $1.53 billion through3,201 suspicious transactions.
The report released by FinCEN exposed the money laundering and facilitationto terrorists in India after the US banks filed a set of SuspiciousActivity Reports (SARs) against 44 Indian banks over transactions made bydifferent entities and individuals between 2011 and 2017.
The Indian banks flagged by the watchdoglink state-owned PunjabNational Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, HDFC Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, CanaraBank, IndusInd Bank, Bank of Baroda and others.
It emerged that antiques’ smugglers were also found involved in moneylaundering in India, whereas, the laundered money was also used in IndianPremier League (IPL). The Indian banks have reportedly facilitated moneylaunderers for their wrongdoing through gold and diamonds, according to thereport.
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The report also raised questions regarding the transfer of funds and itsutilisation when a UN report spotted the presence of terrorist groups inKerala and Assam states of India.
The FinCEN probe traced more than $2 trillion transactions between 1999 and2017. Nearly 90 financial institutions had flagged the suspicioustransactions in over 2,100 reports, said local media reports.
