ANNOUNCEMENT: FATF president Giles Thomson to deliver keynote address at IAFCS London

Regulatory Watch News

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  FinCEN Permanently Ends Beneficial Ownership Reporting Requirements for Millions of Small Business Owners

  FinCEN

  August 11, 2026

  Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) is issuing a final rule that permanently removes the requirement for U.S. companies and U.S. persons to report beneficial ownership information to FinCEN under the Corporate Transparency Act. The final rule is effective on its publication in the Federal Register. FinCEN today also announced that it will delete previously reported information by U.S. persons—now exempt from the reporting requirements—from the beneficial ownership information database. Under the final rule, foreign entities that are reporting companies will still be required to report beneficial ownership information for foreign individuals.

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  Cocaine worth £232m seized in National Crime Agency investigation

  National Crime Agency

  August 11, 2026

    A huge seizure of almost three tonnes of cocaine has been made as part of a National Crime Agency investigation. The haul – which has an estimated street value of £232m – was made on Thursday at London Gateway Port in Essex. Acting on NCA intelligence, Border Force officers recovered the 2.9 tonne consignment which was hidden in a coverload of bananas from South America.

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  Ironside: Sydney airport worker jailed over role in 127kg pseudoephedrine importation

  Australia Federal Police

  August 11, 2026

  A Sydney airport worker was sentenced to two years and four months' imprisonment, with a non-parole period of 18 months, by the NSW District Court today (11 August, 2026) for his role in supporting a criminal organisation to import 127kg of pseudoephedrine. The man, 56, was arrested in June, 2021, after an AFP investigation linked him to the illicit activity as a result of intelligence gained during the AFP-led Operation Ironside. Operation Ironside was a three-year operation during which the AFP and FBI monitored criminals' encrypted communications through a dedicated encrypted communications platform.