NEWS: MONEYVAL praises Bulgaria for strengthening AML regime

Regulatory Watch News

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  Five Eyes Law Enforcement Group dismantles global money laundering syndicates

  Australia Federal Police

  June 19, 2026

  Five Eyes law enforcement agencies have dismantled 15 major international money laundering syndicates through coordinated investigations; stripping criminals of millions of dollars of illicit profits and disrupting their ability to reinvest in further crimes. Intelligence sharing and joint action through the Five Eyes Law Enforcement Group (FELEG) in the past decade has resulted in significant asset confiscations, arrests, and the disruption of criminal networks operating across multiple countries. These syndicates were funnelling hundreds of millions of dollars of illicit funds across borders, both for their own operations and on behalf of other organised crime groups.

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  Treasury Targets Hizballah-Aligned Officials and Intensifies Pressure on Global Financial Network

  OFAC

  June 18, 2026

  WASHINGTON—Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) is designating Hizballah-aligned Lebanese officials, as well as members of a Hizballah-associated business network overseen by Alaa Hassan Hamieh, also known as Alaa Hamieh.  The Lebanese officials designated today have used their influence to obstruct Lebanon’s peace process and delay the disarmament of Hizballah. OFAC is also expanding upon the March 20, 2026 designations of Alaa Hamieh and his business network by targeting additional interlocutors in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and Oman who raise funds, execute contracts, and operate front companies to generate revenue for Hizballah.

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  FinCEN, Agencies Propose Rule to Implement GENIUS Act Customer Identification Program Requirement

  FinCEN

  June 18, 2026

  WASHINGTON—Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), together with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, and the National Credit Union Administration issued a joint proposed rule to implement provisions of the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins Act (GENIUS Act). The GENIUS Act directs that permitted payment stablecoin issuers be treated as financial institutions under the Bank Secrecy Act and be required to maintain effective customer identification programs. The proposal seeks to provide an appropriately tailored regime that mitigates potential illicit finance risks while protecting the U.S. financial system and national security interests.