On October 3, 2023, FinCEN Director Andrea Gacki spoke at the The Assembly by ACAMS where she enumerated FinCEN’s present priorities in terms of combatting financial crimes. In particular, Gacki discussed the agency’s updates on Beneficial Ownership Information implementation, anti-Corruption initiatives in the residential real estate and investment, efforts to combat fentanyl trafficking, and proposed whistleblower program.
Beneficial Ownership Information Implementation
According to Gacki, FinCEN’s efforts are focused significantly on the implementation of the beneficial ownership information reporting requirements of the Corporate Transparency Act. She discussed the importance of collecting beneficial ownership information in untangling opaque corporate structures, which facilitate money laundering, corruption, sanctions, tax evasion, drug trafficking, fraud, and other criminal offenses, allowing enforcement authorities to go after criminals and protect national security.
Gacki enumerated a number of resources that FinCEN published to help small businesses comply with the new requirements, including the Small Entity Compliance Guide, a set of FAQs, an introductory brochure, and a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that would extend the beneficial ownership information reporting deadline for certain reporting companies.
In addition, FinCEN will conduct webinars and additional outreach to a variety of State, local, and Tribal government stakeholders, establish a dedicated beneficial ownership information contact center, and issue additional FAQs on a rolling basis. Gacki also assured that reporting companies can be confident that their sensitive information will be protected in a secure, confidential database built to meet the Federal government’s highest security standards and that only authorized users can access the information for authorized purposes.
FinCEN’s Other Anti-Corruption Initiatives: Residential Real Estate and Investment Advisers
Director Gacki also talked about FinCEN’s other initiatives in fighting corruption. She stated that FinCEN has also been examining the money laundering risks and vulnerabilities with certain “gatekeeper” industries such as real estate and investment advisers, and identifying how best to address those risks. According to Gacki, FinCEN is currently developing a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, which they aim to issue later this year, to address the potential for money laundering created by real estate transactions in the commercial and residential sectors. The agency is also re-examining the AML/CFT risks posed by investment advisers and to identify the best ways to mitigate those risks.
Fentanyl
FinCEN has recently convened a number of public-private partnership information exchanges focused on fentanyl—domestically through FinCEN Exchange and internationally through a roundtable with Mexican authorities and financial institutions alongside their U.S. counterparts. These exchanges, according to Gacki, allows private sector entities, public sector financial regulators, and law enforcement agencies to discuss best practices and approaches to combat the misuse of the financial sector for drug trafficking, among other crimes.
Whistleblower Program
At the end of her speech, Gacki briefly discussed the agency’s whistleblower program. She said that FinCEN intends to issue a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for this program.
Read the FinCEN Director's full speech here.
