The U.S. Treasury Department is warning banks and financial institutions to be on the lookout for attempts by Russian state actors and oligarchs to evade sanctions, including through cryptocurrency transactions, as the government tries to preempt efforts to circumvent the imposed measures. to Moscow for the invasion of Ukraine.
The Treasury Department’s FinCEN (Financial Crime Enforcement Network) on Monday sent a note to U.S. financial institutions advising extra “vigilance” for possible sanctions evasion activities and offering guidance on “red flags.” to detect such movements.
FinCEN’s message follows heavy sanctions imposed by the US and its allies on Russia’s top financial institutions, Russian oligarchs and their families, as well as the country’s central bank and state-owned companies. This comes amid concerns that some Russian entities and individuals may try to use cryptocurrencies to evade US and European sanctions.
“Given the increasing economic pressure on Russia, it is vitally important that US financial institutions are vigilant about possible evasion of Russian sanctions, including by state actors and oligarchs,” said Him Das, acting director of FinCEN.
“While we have not seen widespread circumvention of our sanctions using methods such as cryptocurrency, prompt reporting of suspicious activity contributes to our national security and our efforts to support Ukraine and its people,” he added.
FinCEN said it was providing “selected red flags to help identify potential sanctions evasion activities, and reminded financial institutions of their reporting obligations under the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA), including with respect to convertible virtual currency.” (CVC)”.
He also said it is “critical” for all financial institutions, “including those with visibility into CVC flows” such as cryptocurrency exchanges and administrators, “to quickly identify and report suspicious activity associated with potential sanctions evasion.”
In addition, the Treasury is urging banks to “share information” in accordance with the US Patriot Act legislation adopted after the 2001 terrorist attacks and “consider how using innovative tools and solutions can help identify Russian and Belarusian occult”.
Translated by Luiz Roberto M. Gonçalves
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