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Kazakhstan’s Financial Secrets Exposed: Hundreds of Millions in Suspicious Funds Transited Through US Banks
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A stunning investigation has revealed that hundreds of millions of dollars of suspicious origin have flowed through Kazakhstan with the help of US banks, according to thousands of leaked documents.
The Investigation
The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists and BuzzFeed News uncovered the data, which shows how US banks served as intermediaries for thousands of suspicious international transactions over an 18-year period. Notably, Kazakhstan’s former oligarchs were among those implicated in the scandal.
FinCEN’s Failure to Act
The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), created by the US Treasury Department in 1990 to combat domestic and international money laundering, collected millions of suspicious activity reports (SARs) from banks and brokers. However, despite having no power to stop the transactions, FinCEN allowed them to continue.
Implicated Banks
The documents reveal that several major US banks processed millions of dollars in transactions for Kazakhstan’s former mayor Viktor Khrapunov, even after Interpol issued a Red Notice for his arrest:
- Bank of America
- Citibank
- JPMorgan Chase
- American Express
Other implicated individuals include:
- Mukhtar Ablyazov, a former banker who fell out with Kazakhstan’s ruler Nursultan Nazarbayev and went on to become a major political opposition figure.
Deutsche Bank’s Involvement
Deutsche Bank, which has been linked to money laundering scandals in the past, is also embroiled in the scandal, having failed to stop the flow of suspicious funds despite being aware of the potential risks.
The Scale of the Problem
Between 1999 and 2017, around $2 trillion was flagged as potentially illicit in SARs leaked in the FinCEN Files.
Consequences
The investigation highlights the role played by Western financial institutions in facilitating corruption and money laundering. As one analyst noted:
In order to satisfy demand for corruption, tax havens, and cash shelters, Central Asian elites need the West to supply them with tools for circumventing laws and public scrutiny.
The FinCEN Files demonstrate that these Western institutions were aware of dirty money flowing through their channels, yet continued to facilitate it.
What’s Next?
The investigation is ongoing, and it remains to be seen whether other Kazakh figures will be implicated in the scandal.