By Pat Johnson
Money laundering is a delicate and confusing process and it may lead to you being arrested and convicted for breaking the law. Changing back money into white is illegal in most countries, as is dodging taxes. There are several ways to avoid getting censured for money laundering operations however.
Know your customer well before transaction
You should choose your customers from a localized and well known environment, making the risk of losing money low. You should try and avoid changing your clients through mergers and acquisition in the domestic market, and you most certainly should not put your faith into overseas companies that do not have a stable profit generating mechanism or steady growth rates.
Avoid NRIs
Non resident aliens, foreign commercial and private customers should be avoided as they are high risk ventures. A moderate number of high risk clients will create uncertainty in your business dealings. Dealing exclusively with high risk clients is a huge gamble that does not always pay off.
Do not trust multiple account holders
Making overseas investments and opening branches without proper supervision and control is a dangerous idea. Having multiple accounts with foreign banks and corporations is a great risk as the fund flow is subject to a lot of international and local pressure from legislation and corruption in the case of some countries. Money therefore should be put where you know it’s safe.
Do not trust electronic banking systems
Electronic banking might be lucrative and easy but it also opens your account to hacking and other computer problems. The best and safest way to handle accounts is in person, face to face thereby lessening the chances of your money being misplaced. The choice of the bank is also important as it determines the kind and quality of service you will be getting from them. Using foreign banks that offer a lot of schemes is not a good idea as many of those schemes may be fraudulent.
Get good hold of good customers
Limited number of customers who are high risk, limited banking through international channels, limited third party contracts and control on international money transfers will help set a good reputation for your company. A high number of foreign clients and large amounts of funds being transferred overseas will draw the attention of government agencies. It also outs your money at risk because you cannot exactly find out what is being done with it. Security is of paramount importance in the banking business and money laundering is an even more complex problem. It is advisable to take advice from money laundering lawyer from http://www.burtoncopeland.com at every point.
Conclusion
The organizations you work with should be free from trade finance, cross border transactions, management of sovereign debt and no history of OFAC actions. If you do business with a company that does a lot of these activities you are inviting trouble. A history of OFAC actions in a company is an indicator if the malpractices and abuse of funds by the said company. Therefore you must choose your bank carefully and make sure it has a good reputation in the market and that it has not been in trouble with the law.
