Safeguarding Global Trade: Mitigating Trade-Based Money Laundering with Themis Search

Introduction

Trade-based money laundering (TBML) poses a significant threat to the integrity of the global financial system, allowing criminals to launder illicit funds through legitimate trade transactions. With the rise of global trade and the increasing complexity of supply chains, detecting and preventing TBML has become a daunting challenge for financial institutions and regulatory authorities. In this article, we explore the nature of TBML and how Themis Search offers a robust solution to mitigate these risks effectively.

Understanding Trade-Based Money Laundering

Trade-based money laundering involves disguising the proceeds of crime as legitimate trade transactions. Criminals exploit gaps and vulnerabilities in the trade finance process to move illicit funds across borders undetected. Common TBML schemes include over- and under-invoicing of goods, phantom shipping, and misrepresentation of goods and services.

TBML is notoriously difficult to detect due to the sheer volume of global trade transactions and the complexity of international supply chains. Moreover, traditional anti-money laundering (AML) and know your customer (KYC) measures may not be sufficient to identify suspicious trade activities, making TBML a preferred method for money launderers and terrorist financiers.

How can Themis Help?

Comprehensive Sanctions Screening: Themis Search includes comprehensive sanctions screening capabilities, enabling organizations to screen trade counterparties against global watchlists and sanctions databases. By ensuring compliance with international sanctions regimes, Themis helps mitigate the risk of unwittingly facilitating illicit trade transactions.

Customizable Alerts and Reporting: Themis Search offers 24/7 ongoing monitoring with push notifications. By providing actionable insights and intelligence, Themis empowers organizations to take proactive measures to mitigate financial crime risks.

Specialized Intelligence Reports: Themis has a long track record in providing unparalleled investigative intelligence to its customers, and the combination of market leading data, advanced risk mapping and skilled financial crime investigators and intelligence sets it apart in an increasingly crowded marketplace.

The development of the Intelligence module was driven by client feedback and industry demands; it allows users to both conduct their own investigations or request for specialist intelligence support from Themis. This comes in the form of deep dive Enhanced Due Diligence reports, supply chain analysis, ESG risk reports, as well as sectoral or country risk reports.

Conclusion

Trade-based money laundering represents a significant challenge for financial institutions, regulatory authorities, and businesses involved in global trade. With the proliferation of complex supply chains and cross-border transactions, detecting and preventing TBML requires innovative solutions that can adapt to evolving threats.

Themis' sanctions screening platform offers a robust solution to mitigate the risks associated with TBML effectively. By providing real-time monitoring, advanced analytics, comprehensive sanctions screening, and customizable alerting capabilities, Themis enables organizations to detect and prevent illicit trade activities and safeguard the integrity of the global financial system.

In an increasingly interconnected world, investing in advanced TBML detection and prevention solutions is essential for organizations looking to mitigate financial crime risks and comply with regulatory requirements. With Themis' sanctions screening platform, organizations can enhance their AML and compliance capabilities and stay ahead of the evolving threat landscape posed by TBML.