Our colleague, Andreas Frank, an international banking consultant in Switzerland reports: The U.S. Department of Treasury Assistant Secretary for Terrorist Financing, Daniel Glaser, called on for the Lebanese state to uproot money laundering, terrorist financing and other forms of illicit finance from the Lebanese financial system.
The Lebanese financial system is a critical asset to the Lebanese people and the basis of the national and regional economy, Glaser said at the Arab Banking Conference.
He pointed out that Lebanon’s ability to retain its its position as an important regional and international financial center requires constant vigilance.
Professionalism and stability, which have been the hallmark of the Lebanese financial system, can be maintained only through the efforts of both the public and private sectors to ensure a hostile environment for terrorists, criminals, narcotraffickers, and sanctioned regimes such as Iran and Syria. Glaser lashed out at Hezbollah during his speech, stressing that working together we can stop illicit financial activities of groups that seek to destabilize the region such as al-Qaida and Hizbullah.
He highlighted the case of the Lebanese Canadian Bank. That scheme involved the laundering of hundreds of millions of dollars in narcotics proceeds through the Lebanese financial system using bulk cash shipments and trade-based money laundering involving used car sales and consumer goods. These drug trafficking proceeds were often funneled to Lebanon through several Lebanese exchange houses that utilized accounts at LCB branches.
The LCB narcotics money laundering scheme is indicative of a broader trend: international criminals are developing increasingly sophisticated means to move funds and obscure the illicit activities and actors involved. The narcotics trafficking exposed by our actions against LCB spanned several continents and involved financial flows of hundreds of millions of dollars across many jurisdictions.
In the case of LCB, Hezbollah benefitted from a global narcotics trafficking network. This should not be surprising given Hezbollah’s involvement in a wide range of illicit activities. These illicit activities, combined with its ties to sanctioned regimes such as Iran and Syria, should call into question all financial relationships with Hezbollah or its agents. And the risks of engaging in such relationships will only increase as more
countries apply sanctions on Hezbollah, which continues to engage in destabilizing military activity in Syria and attacks in Europe.
As Syria continues to be destabilized by horrific acts of violence, leading us to sanction both the Assad regime and al-Qa’ida affiliates, the region faces new and unprecedented economic challenges. Treasury Department Glaser’s Speech
