The Cayman Islands financial services sector is experiencing significant tension after the Financial Action Task Force’s (FATF) putting the jurisdiction on its greylist, in part for lack of enforcing anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-terrorism financing (CFT) regulations.  The Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (CIMA) imposed a fine of more than CI$4.2 million on one of its largest financial services providers for breaches of its AML regulations. Meanwhile, one of its gold star financial services providers has obtained a judicial review of how CIMA interprets and applies certain provisions of the AML regulations after the provider has accused CIMA of changing without prior notice the way it applies certain provisions of the AML regulations.

On May 10, 2021, the United Nations Investigative Team to Promote Accountability Against Da’esh/ISIL (UNITAD) found that the crimes committed by ISIL against the Yazidis, a religious minority in northern Iraq, constitutes genocide. In a briefing to ambassadors, the head of UNITAD and soon-to-be head International Criminal Court Prosecutor, Karim Khan, said there is “clear and convincing evidence that the crimes against the Yazidi people clearly constituted genocide.”[1] Evidence showed that ISIL committed a range of inhuman acts, including extermination, rape, murder, torture, enslavement, persecution, and other war crimes against the Yazidis. The crimes that ISIL committed “shocked the conscience of humanity,” said Khan.[2] The UN report is crucial because it identified and preserves evidence of the atrocities that will help prosecute ISIL perpetrators. [3]

On May 12, 2021, The European Union Advocate General opined that a decision by a German telecom company to cancel a contract with an Iranian bank, subject to U.S. primary sanctions, should be regarded as invalid if the German company cannot justify it on any basis, other than the desire to comply with U.S. legislation providing for secondary sanctions against non-U.S. undertakings trading with an Iranian person, which falls under the EU blocking statute.  The opinion puts the German telecom company in a real dilemma.[1]

On May 14, 2021, the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a criminal information charging Swiss Life Holding AG (Swiss Life Holding, Swiss Life (Liechtenstein) AG (Swiss Life Liechtenstein), Swiss Life (Singapore) Pte. Ltd. (Swiss Life Singapore), and Swiss Life (Luxembourg) S.A. (Swiss Life Luxembourg), collectively the “Swiss Life Entities,” with conspiring with U.S. taxpayers and others to hide from the IRS more than $1.452 billion in offshore insurance policies, including more than 1,600 insurance wrapper policies, and related policy investment accounts in banks around the world and the income generated in these accounts.[1]

The Armenian and Azerbaijani governments are maneuvering to start investigations and prosecutions of alleged war crimes during the conflict between the two countries from September 27 to  November 10, 2020.

The enactment of the Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2020 (AMLA) has brought new opportunities for foreign governments and stakeholders interested in stopping international money laundering.  Until now, foreign governments have had difficulty maintaining civil actions in the United States to hold accountable persons participating in criminal activity, such as corruption, tax crimes, fraud, drug trafficking, trafficking of persons, etc. This article discusses some of the opportunities as a result of the AMLA: namely the Kleptocracy Recovery Rewards Act (KARRA); and the whistleblower provisions of the AMLA.

The Black Axe, a Nigerian fraternity organization turned mafia, has been a target of law enforcement in both the U.S. and abroad. Recently, the Italian police arrested several members of the Black Axe for fraud and other serious crimes. A few years ago, the U.S., Canada, and the United Kingdom similarly charged members of the Black Axe. The Black Axe’s crimes reach far beyond borders and thus should promote the collaboration of law enforcement across nations to combat organized crime. 

On April 29, 2021, the State Minister for Culture and Media of the German Government, announced the signing by the ministry and the Nigerian Government of a joint declaration to return Benin bronzes in German museums.[1]

On April 27, 2021, Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas announced a new counter-network targeting operation focused on transnational criminal organizations (TCOs) affiliated with the smuggling of migrants.[1] On April 26, 2021, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned one current and one former Guatemalan government official for their roles in corruption in Guatemala.[2]

On March 26, 2021, the European Union Committee (the Committee) of the UK House of Lords (HL) published its report on the implications for law enforcement and criminal judicial cooperation between the EU and UK from the end of the transition period.