When you grow up in cold weather and in a place where the license plate tagline is “Greatest Snow on Earth” and where the 2002 Olympics were held, you tend to get involved in winter sports. My winter sport of choice was ice skating, but many of my friends were involved in ice hockey leagues. I spent a significant amount of time cheering them on as they competed at the rink. Part of the fun of watching hockey is the sheer physicality of the sport, where in some instances, depending on the foul committed, players are placed in a penalty box for an amount of time. Once the time is completed, they jump into the rink ready to play.
Like the players we see enter the penalty box for misconduct, Russia has also entered its own sanctions penalty box. The lead article, “Russia’s Hope of Ice Hockey Glory Buried Under Sanctions,” details the demise of the Russian Kontinental Hockey League due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The case study outlines what the results of sanctions on key Russian individuals have done to the once internationally renowned “Red Machine.”
Gliding along to the second headline article, “Trade Finance Risk and Controls,” the authors give an overview of the risks of trade finance and how due diligence controls can help in keeping financial crime in check.
The anti-financial crime (AFC) industry is a team sport that requires a proper skill set; the article “The BSA Tractor” outlines how proper training for law enforcement (LE) professionals can help them in maximizing the benefits of the Bank Secrecy Act.
There comes a point for every professional where they need to step up from the minor league to the major league. This edition includes tips and strategies to assist anti-money laundering (AML) professionals in taking the next step in their careers and joining management in the article titled “Making the Leap to Management.”
As in hockey, the key to success is a strong defense. In the article “Why Terrorist Organizations Use Human Trafficking,” the author discusses how terrorist organizations profit from the use of human exploitation in the forms of sexual and labor trafficking. Without the human element and the continued abuse of such individuals, terrorist organizations would fall apart, especially if you also cut off their source of income. AML professionals can defend their institutions by learning these key concepts and how to implement a stronger strategy for dealing with human trafficking.
In a classic team-up situation, the article “The Great Divide: Getting Convergence Right This Time” looks into the possible challenges and opportunities a union of AML, fraud and cyber could present for financial institutions and LE agencies.
I hope we can all keep our eye on the puck and strive to stop financial crime and steer the proverbial puck to “light the lamp” of efficient AFC compliance.
Karla Monterrosa-Yancey, CAMS
Editor-in-Chief
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