and Currency Crimes and Protection. The USA PATRIOT Act is international in scope and aims at controlling international money laundering related to the financing of international terrorism, while attempting to resolve issues in the global banking system that makes money laundering possible. The USA PATRIOT Act’s policies and legislative measures significantly increase the power and strength of U.S. officials to prevent, more readily detect and more easily prosecute global money laundering and financing related to terrorism. It also provides a mandate that is national in scope for subjecting foreign jurisdictions and financial institutions that operate abroad to heightened scrutiny.
Special provisions of the USA Patriot Act also grant increased authority to U.S. government agencies. Under the Act, the Secretary of the Treasury has been empowered with the authority to impose special measures, including being able to shut down specific accounts with offshore banks. Due diligence for domestic and offshore banking and financial institutions has also been implemented through measures of the Act that pertain to correspondent accounts, payable-through accounts, and private banking accounts for non-U.S. individuals in addition to any accounts with off-shore or foreign shell banks.
Some of the most significant aspects of the Act include a broader range of financial institution and other businesses now subjected to requirements. Brokers and securities dealers for the first time are now required to implement anti-money laundering procedures and report suspicious activities (SARs) to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCen) of the Department of the Treasury. Other companies like casinos, insurance companies, travel agencies, real estate closing firms and others are also subject to such procedures. Expanded due diligence, prohibitions against shell banks, regulation of private banking accounts, information sharing requirement...