Category: US

Regulatory Watch News

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

  UNODC

  September 23, 2026

  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.

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  Scam alert related to banks

  HKMA

  September 23, 2026

  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

   

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

  European Public Prosecutor's Office

  September 22, 2026

  (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.