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NEWS: Egypt’s NBE steps in to buy Banque Misr’s UAE operations after sanctions threat 

Premium September 23, 2026

People wait on line to withdraw money from ATM machines at Banque Misr in Cairo, Egypt, March 6, 2024. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh

WEBINAR: Why 58% of banks should rethink how they screen for adverse media

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NEWS: UK finance firms close almost 240,000 suspected money mule accounts per year

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ANALYSIS: Money mules are no longer hapless recruits – they are becoming organised criminal networks

By Federico Maccioni and Vallari Srivastava

NATIONAL Bank of Egypt (NBE) has stepped in to acquire Banque Misr’s branches in the United Arab Emirates, the two Egyptian lenders said on Tuesday, weeks after the branches were threatened by the US Treasury with sanctions over links to Iran.

The US Treasury said on August 28 that it viewed the branches as a “critical node” for the Iranian government’s access to US dollars and proposed revoking Banque Misr UAE’s correspondent banking access to US financial institutions.

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WEBINAR: Why 58% of banks should rethink how they screen for adverse media

 Premium

NEWS: UK finance firms close almost 240,000 suspected money mule accounts per year

 Premium

ANALYSIS: Money mules are no longer hapless recruits – they are becoming organised criminal networks

Regulatory Watch News

  • UN Crime Congress: Technology is transforming crime – and the response to it

    UNODC

    Criminal networks now move money, goods and information across borders at lightning speed, exploiting everything from new technologies to global instability. Yet the same tools that help drive illicit activity could also transform the fight against it. Technology, while creating what Ms. Juma describes as “an ecosystem of criminal profiteering with a very far-reaching footprint”, can also enable faster, smarter and more coordinated responses to threats that increasingly touch every corner of the world. Those challenges – from cyber-enabled crime to trafficking and online scams – will be at the centre of discussions in Abu Dhabi at the 15th UN Crime Congress; the world's largest gathering focused on crime prevention and criminal justice.

  • Scam alert related to banks

    HKMA

    The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) wishes to alert members of the public to the press releases issued by the banks listed below relating to fraudulent websites, internet banking login screens, phishing emails or other scams, which have been reported to the HKMA.  Hyperlinks to the press releases are available on the HKMA website.  

           Bank        Type of Scam
    The Bank of East Asia, Limited Fraudulent websites and internet banking login screens
    Shanghai Commercial Bank Limited Fraudulent websites and internet banking login screens
    Chong Hing Bank Limited Fraudulent websites and internet banking login screens
    Chiyu Banking Corporation Limited Fraudulent websites and internet banking login screens
    Dah Sing Bank, Limited Fraudulent website
     

  • Investigation ‘Escape Room’: EPPO arrests another suspect and seizes €3.5 million

    European Public Prosecutor's Office

    (Luxembourg, 22 September 2026) – At the request of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) in Rotterdam (the Netherlands), another suspect was arrested in connection with an investigation into criminal networks operating cross-border VAT fraud schemes linked to the sales of electronic devices, code-named ‘Escape Room’. Assets worth €3.5 million were also seized.  This arrest follows the detention of eight suspects in Belgium, the Netherlands and Poland in October 2025. The suspect is believed to have been a member of the criminal organisations under investigation. He allegedly acted as a broker in the VAT carousel scheme, serving as an intermediary between companies in the chain and claiming VAT refunds to which he was not entitled from the tax administration.

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