Bulk Cash Smuggling

 

Credit：

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/namescan.io_moneylaundering-riskmanagement-aml-activity-7214058623923105792-nSfe

Credit：

https://www.chinatimes.com/newspapers/20170501000274-260102?chdtv

說明：電視劇《人民的名義》男主角反貪局長侯亮平（演員：陸毅）查獲 2.3 億人民幣的現金賄款。（照片摘自網路）

Bulk Cash Smuggling / Human Courier Smuggling

經常聽到的新聞故事：有人攜帶巨額現金入境，然後在海陸空邊境關卡被執法部門查獲，那些來歷不明的現金被官府沒收。那些現金可以是收藏於貨車、貨船、行李或日用品之內，也可以是捆綁或收藏於人體之內。這是一種很傳統的洗黑錢手法，反洗錢術語叫 Bulk Cash Smuggling 或 Human Courier Smuggling，負責運送現金的人叫「錢騾」（money mules）。對，螞蟻搬家。

英文的說法：Physically transporting money (suitcases, couriers, containers) across borders to deposit it in jurisdictions with weaker controls or to bypass currency restrictions. (Source: Pietro Odorisio)

背後的動機，可以是洗黑錢（巨額現金是犯罪收入），也可以是繞過外匯管制 (Capital control) ，即是走資。香港因為背靠有外匯管制的中國大陸，經常有「錢騾」出入，久不久就被執法部門查獲。還有幾多漏網之魚？自己想。

此外，也有人在家中囤積大量現金，然後被（家人）偷取或被（執法部門）發現。中文傳媒的報導不會解答以下兩個問題：（一）巨額現金的來歷（原因：牽涉犯罪活動或源自貪污腐敗）以及（二）為什麼當事人不把錢存入銀行系統（原因：避免被銀行凍結資金或關閉帳戶）。欲知詳情，請參考《延伸閱讀》部份提供的真實個案。

Cash is King 

今時今日，從事正當行業的普通人（打工仔或小商戶）越來越少使用現金，我們正邁向無現金社會 (Cashless society) ，為什麼犯罪集團依然要用螞蟻搬家的手法搬運黑錢？原因是：在洗黑錢的世界，現金有無法取代的位置，因為它具備以下幾個優點：

（一）匿名，無需登記個人資料，難以追蹤來源和去向，方便犯罪者隱藏身份。

（二）執法部門要把查獲的現金跟犯罪活動掛勾有難度。執法部門是官僚制度，要走程序和收集證據，不及犯罪集團靈活。調查需時和有難度，對犯罪集團有利。

（三）不會留下數碼腳印 (Digital Footprint)。用比特幣 (Bitcoin) 洗黑錢的錢志敏和陳志在去年 10 月間被捕，說明西方世界的執法部門已經有辦法追蹤和凍結比特幣，令「去中心化」神話破滅。這是其中一個原因，令比特幣的價格從去年 10 月初的 12.3 萬美元高點下跌一半至今日的 6.3 萬美元。從犯罪集團的角度看，加密貨幣 (Crypto currency) 不可靠，於是回歸最古老但有效的方法，即是現金。

（四）現金無需通過中間人或任何系統即可使用，減少被凍結或被查獲的機會。

（五）使用現金比較簡單，不會引人注目。現金尤其受毒販的歡迎，墨西哥毒販賣毒品收美元（現金），然後跟需要美元的中國人結盟，在中國人的協助下洗黑錢，收回墨西哥披索或中國貨物，而扮演中間人的中國人就得到美元。請參考這個博客的舊文《移形換影》(2020 年 12 月 12 日) 和《金山黑錢》(2020 年 5 月 8 日) ，裡面有詳細解釋。

外國金融罪案專家的說法：

• Cash is king in the world of money laundering. 

• Linking cash to criminal activities remains a challenge for law enforcement.

• Criminals like cash because unlike card transactions or bank transfer, it is roughly untraceable, which make it useful for both transactions and money laundering. (Source: RUSI)

Large Denomination Banknotes

從犯罪集團的角度來看，使用大面額的紙幣，就可以一次過搬運更多的黑錢，符合成本效益。某些國家或司法管轄區所發行的大面額的紙幣（例如：500 歐羅），因此成為犯罪集團的熱門選擇。外國金融罪案專家這樣說： 

• Criminals adore banknotes, thanks to their anonymity and convenience, and that love has only grown as the financial system has become more regulated. They love high-denomination banknotes most of all, because they let criminals move a lot of value in the smallest possible space. (Source: Oliver Bullough)

• High-denomination bills, although less common in legitimate transactions, are critical for reducing the physical volume of illicit funds. A single suitcase can carry millions of euros. (Source: Pietro Odorisio)

針對這種情況，印度、新加坡、歐盟和英國都曾經採取行政手段，減少甚至是廢除流通中的大面額紙幣，以免它們成為犯罪集團的洗黑錢工具，又或者是被民間囤積起來（動機是避稅，那是印度人的玩法，印度總理莫迪 (Narendra Modi) 於是取消流通中的大面額紙幣，迫老百姓去銀行換取細面額紙幣，把民間囤積的金錢迫出來）。請參考《延伸閱讀》部份推介的英語視頻，裡面有詳細解釋。這個博客的另一篇舊文《偷龍轉鳳》(2017 年 4 月 26 日) 解釋印度總理莫迪的盤算。 

《延伸閱讀》部份也有節錄 Oliver Bullough 的文章，他指出在電子支付 (Electronic Payment) 日益普及的情況之下，部份國家的流通中貨幣 (Money-in-circulation) 數字不跌反升，而且創新高。原因是有大量的現金（美元及歐羅）被囤積起來，成為洗黑錢工具。他預言：稍後發行的美國立國 250 週年紀念鈔票（印有 Donald Trump 頭像）將會成為洗黑錢工具。這個預言充滿黑色幽默，信不信由你。曾經替犯罪集團洗黑錢，然後改邪歸正，成為反洗錢專家 Kenneth Rijock 也有相同的看法，請參考《延伸閱讀》部份的文章。

結論：財可通神，穿梭陰陽，在地面和地下兩個金融系統中不斷流動。現金既可用於正當產業，發揮促進經濟的作用，亦可以是犯罪集團的洗黑錢工具，又或者是被囤積起來避稅。本質上，亦正亦邪，視乎落在什麼人手上。

延伸閱讀／參考資料： 

兩女子涉跨境運送大量現金洗黑錢被判囚　海關歡迎判決

RTHK 2026-05-07

https://news.rthk.hk/rthk/ch/component/k2/1853856-20260507.htm

兩名女子涉嫌跨境運送大量現金「洗黑錢」，涉及 2 億 8 千萬港元，今日在區域法院分別被判監禁 58 個月及 36 個月。

法官王詩麗判刑時表示，同意兩名被告並非主腦，只擔當搬運工的角色，亦無獲得巨大得益，但她們仍屬重要角色，指她們跨境運送現金，對兩地的金融系統有負面影響。法官指，其中一名被告積極運送現金，151 次申報攜帶超過 12 萬港元，最多一次涉及 300 多萬元，若沒有其幫助「黑錢」不會進入香港，又指若海關沒有執法，被告可能會繼續有關行為。法官亦不同意首被告因無知而犯罪，指她心存僥倖、貪得無厭。至於第二被告，法官表示，不接納辯方指被告認為所攜帶的金錢屬家人，又提到她試過一日多次攜帶現金到港。

法官表示，兩名被告 2019 年被捕，2023 年首次聆訊，2026 年 5 月案件才告一段落，歷時 6 年多，雖然接納控方指因社會事件及疫情令案件有延誤，但仍對被告構成心理及經濟壓力，所以酌情扣減 6 個月刑期。海關表示，歡迎判決，相信監禁的刑期反映罪行的嚴重性，對於不法分子作出清晰的警示，明確指出洗黑錢是嚴重的罪行。

兩人跨境運送現金「洗黑錢」 判囚 58 個月及 36 個月

RTHK 2026-05-07

https://news.rthk.hk/rthk/ch/component/k2/1853892-20260507.htm

這宗是海關首次引用《有組織及嚴重罪行條例》，起訴跨境運送現金「洗黑錢」的案件。海關歡迎判決，相信判處監禁刑期具阻嚇作用，反映「洗黑錢」罪行的嚴重性。

皇崗口岸

全部金牛！男子斜揹袋塞滿 116 萬港幣斷正  X 光機建功

撰文：朱加樟

香港 01 (2026-06-14)

https://www.hk01.com/article/60360054?utm_source=01articlecopy&utm_medium=referral

中國海關總署 14 日發布文章稱，近日內地皇崗海關查獲一名旅客攜帶未申報港幣 116 萬元出境（由內地進入香港）案。

中國海關總署指，海關關員在皇崗口岸旅檢大廳對出境旅客及其行李物品進行監管時，發現一名男性旅客進入海關監管區時未向海關申報，且其隨身攜帶的一個黑色斜揹袋機檢圖像異常，隨即對其進行攔截檢查。經進一步檢查，海關關員在斜揹袋內發現一個裝有大量港幣現金的布袋，經清點，共計 116 萬港元。

中國海關總署提醒：根據相關規定，15 天內攜帶港幣首次出境時，限額為等值 5000 美元，超出額度的海關不予放行。如確需攜帶超出限額的大量現鈔，應事先到外匯管理部門或銀行申領攜帶外匯出境許可證。

將軍澳尚德邨 13 歲少女疑偷家中 $38 萬現金　

母親大義滅親報警拉人

撰文：凌逸德

香港 01 (2026-06-13)

https://www.hk01.com/article/60359816?utm_source=01articlecopy&utm_medium=referral

將軍澳發生盜竊案。昨日（本周五 / 6 月 12 日）下午 1 時許，警方接獲一名 47 歲翟姓女子報案，指其放置在尚德邨尚仁樓住所房間的現金不翼而飛，總數大約 38 萬元 （港幣），懷疑被 13 歲女兒盜去。警員接報到場，經初步調查，涉案少女涉嫌「盜竊」被捕，現正被扣留調查。案件交由將軍澳警區刑事調查隊第一隊跟進。

 

Save Lily 懶人包

「非常父母」風波始末

從芬蘭到瑞典 回港家中分娩   Danny 驗 DNA 終證具血緣關係

星島頭條 2026-06-04 HKT

https://www.stheadline.com/society/3579159/

北歐時期

首胎夭折、次女 Lily 被瑞典政府接管

2019 年：曾先生及關小姐於芬蘭居住期間曾於在家自行分娩，惟首胎長女在一個月後不幸夭折。兩人其後遭芬蘭警方控告涉嫌遺棄及嚴重疏忽照顧殺人。不過關小姐報稱長女是自然夭折死亡，死因是心臟病及腦膜炎。

2021 年：關小姐再次懷孕，次女 Lily 隨後於芬蘭出生，但一直未有辦理出生登記。兩人及後涉潛逃至瑞典，並非法居留。

2023 年底：瑞典警方在二人暫居貨車發現大量現金，以涉嫌偷錢及洗黑錢將二人分別單獨囚禁。瑞典社福當局發現當時約 2 歲的 Lily 僅穿睡衣、全身骯髒且牙齒嚴重受損，基於保護兒童利益為由，依法將其強制帶走，安排至寄養家庭照顧。

2023 年底：父母其後返港，並開設「Save Lily」社交專頁高調要求瑞典當局交還女兒。瑞典當局拒評個別案件，但重申是依法申請監護令。

陸劇《人民的名義》再掀反腐風潮

中國時報 楊家鑫

2017/05/01

https://www.chinatimes.com/newspapers/20170501000274-260102?chdtv

改編自同名小說、由大陸最高人民檢察院（最高檢）影視劇中心出品的「人民的名義」3 月 28 日在湖南衛視播出，全劇以大陸最高檢反貪總局偵查處處長侯亮平調查中央某部門處長受賄開始，並抽絲剝繭一步步牽出某省各級官員錯綜複雜的腐敗內幕。全劇爆紅原因，在於罕見大尺度披露大陸官場貪腐問題，涉及貪腐的官員級別高達「副國級」，甚至出現官員和小三被捉姦在床、高幹將一捆捆現金藏在家裡，還有副省級高官頑強抵抗中紀委調查等劇情描述，在大陸電視劇裡相當罕見。

Pietro Odorisio 的貼文

Cash: Still the Cornerstone of Money Laundering?

https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7264899043946909696?updateEntityUrn=urn%3Ali%3Afs_updateV2%3A%28urn%3Ali%3Aactivity%3A7264899043946909696%2CFEED_DETAIL%2CEMPTY%2CDEFAULT%2Cfalse%29 

Despite the rise of digital payment systems and tighter financial regulations, cash remains essential for organizedcrime activities, particularly in money laundering. But why is it still so indispensable?

What cash offers:

1. Total Anonymity

Cash transactions require no registration or traceability, making it the perfect tool to obscure the origin and destination of illicit funds.

• It leaves no digital footprint, unlike electronic payments or regulated cryptocurrencies. 

• It is almost impossible to prove who received or spent the cash, creating significant challenges for law enforcement.

A recent example? The discovery of €20 million hidden in the walls of Óscar Sánchez Gil's house—a case that highlights how cash's anonymity enables large-scale illicit operations.

2. Ease of Concealment

The physical nature of cash allows it to be hidden and transported relatively easily, especially with high-denomination banknotes like €500 bills.

• Cross-border smuggling: Physically moving cash through border checkpoints is still a widespread practice.

• Unusual hiding places: Beyond walls, cash is often found hidden in vehicles, shipping containers, or even everyday items.

High-denomination bills, although less common in legitimate transactions, are critical for reducing the physical volume of illicit funds. A single suitcase can carry millions of euros.

3. Flexibility in Usage

• Cash does not require intermediaries or technological infrastructure, making it ready for immediate use in payments, bribes, or illegal purchases.

• It is particularly useful in environments where digital payments are either - difficult to implement or highly traceable.

In economies where cash remains prevalent, its use doesn't raise suspicion.

In the Sánchez Gil case, for instance, the hidden cash was intended to finance further criminal operations, such as cocaine trafficking.

Despite efforts to limit its use, cash remains a powerful tool in the hands of organized crime. The new EU Regulation 2024/1624 introduces stricter limitations, such as mandatory reporting for transactions above €10,000, but is this enough?

Feedbacks

Detecting and seizing hidden cash is incredibly challenging. Unfortunately, both traditional methods and digitalization create significant loopholes for money laundering in today’s world.

Public awareness should be raised, starting with teaching financial literacy and ethical money use in primary schools. Central banks should promote the widespread use of digital currencies (CBDC) as a traceable and secure alternative to cash. Incentivizing digital payments can help combat crime and enhance economic transparency.

Why bulk cash smuggling is a crime

Namescan

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/namescan.io_moneylaundering-riskmanagement-aml-activity-7214058623923105792-nSfe

Bulk cash smuggling is a common method of money laundering that includes physically transporting huge amounts of illicit cash across borders. 

Criminals use this method to avoid inspection from financial institutions and regulatory agencies, avoiding Anti-Money Laundering (AML) mechanisms in place.

Organised crime groups frequently use sophisticated smuggling networks to transport illegal revenues from drug trafficking, tax evasion, and other criminal operations. They may conceal the cash in luggage, vehicles, or freight shipments to avoid detection by customs and border control officials.

Bulk cash smuggling remains an important component of global money laundering schemes, emphasising the need for ongoing attention and stronger measures to counteract it.

Anti-money laundering Network

What is Currency Smuggling in Anti-Money Laundering?

https://amlnetwork.org/aml-glossary/currency-smuggling/

Excerpt: Purpose and Regulatory Basis

Currency smuggling threatens the integrity of financial systems and the stability of national and global economies. Its role in AML is vital because it often serves as a conduit for money laundering, terrorism financing, tax evasion, and other financial crimes. By physically moving cash, criminals can evade AML controls designed to monitor and report suspicious transactions within formal banking channels.

Regulatory frameworks globally emphasize the detection and prevention of currency smuggling as part of broader AML obligations. Key regulations and standards include:

• Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Recommendations, which set international AML/CFT standards including controls on bulk cash movements.

• The USA PATRIOT Act, which mandates reporting and monitoring of large currency transactions to prevent terrorism financing and money laundering.

• The European Union’s AML Directives (AMLD), which impose controls on the physical movement of currency and require declarations for cross-border transfer.

These regulations require financial institutions and border agencies to implement controls, perform due diligence, and report suspicious activities related to bulk cash movements, integrating currency smuggling efforts into the holistic AML compliance landscape.

When and How it Applies

Currency smuggling typically occurs in scenarios where large amounts of unreported physical cash are moved across borders. Common real-world use cases include:

• Drug cartels smuggling drug proceeds to integrate into foreign financial systems.

• Terrorist groups moving cash for operational funding outside traceable channels.

• Criminal enterprises evading tax or regulatory oversight by physically transporting undeclared currency.

• Corrupt officials or businesses hiding assets offshore by moving physical cash.

Triggers for suspicion include undeclared cash at borders exceeding regulatory thresholds, customers attempting large withdrawals or deposits with no clear business rationale, and unusual attempts to avoid formal financial channels.

Modes of smuggling include hiding cash in luggage, vehicles, commercial shipments, or by using human couriers (“mules”). Smugglers may also combine physical smuggling with layered transactions in the financial system to obscure the source and destination of funds.

Types or Variants

There are various forms of currency smuggling, such as: 

• Bulk Cash Smuggling: The physical transport of large sums of currency without declaration, often concealed in shipments or vehicles.

• Human Courier Smuggling: Using individuals to carry cash across borders, sometimes unknowingly or under coercion.

• Concealment Smuggling: Hiding cash within legitimate goods, packaging, or compartments to evade detection.

• Cross-border Transfer Evasion: Attempting electronic or informal transfer methods to avoid scrutiny combined with physical smuggling to cover tracks.

Each variant presents distinct challenges and often overlaps with money laundering layers, making detection and prevention complex.

LSEG Risk Intelligence

Why cash is king in the world of money laundering

https://www.lseg.com/en/risk-intelligence/short-story/episode-7-why-cash-king-money-laundering

In Episode 7 of The Short Story, our Risk Intelligence expert, Daniel Flowe, explains why cash remains a prime tool in the modern money launder’s arsenal and discusses the steps governments are taking to combat illicit activity funded by physical currency.

In this episode, we reveal:

• The methods used by criminals to exploit the anonymity of cash

• The rise of physical currency-related crimes and their impact on economies

• How financial institutions and governments can combat these threats 

Watch the video (6:26 minutes)

（推介原因：裡面提供一段英語視頻，指出印度、新加坡和歐盟都曾經採取行政手段，減少甚至是廢除流通中的大面額紙幣，以免它們成為犯罪集團的洗黑錢工具，又或者是被民間囤積起來。）

Springer Nature Link

Why is cash still king? A strategic report on the use of cash by criminal groups as a facilitator for money laundering

Excerpts

Published: 12 November 2015

Volume 18, pages 355–379, (2015)

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12117-015-9256-x

European Union Agency for Law

Cash is still king: Criminals prefer cash for money laundering

https://www.europol.europa.eu/media-press/newsroom/news/cash-still-king-criminals-prefer-cash-for-money-laundering

In spite of the rapidly changing face of criminality and the rise of cybercrime, money laundering methods detected by law enforcement remain overwhelmingly traditional. Europol’s latest strategic report, ‘Why is cash still king?’, shows that while cash is slowly falling out of favour with consumers, it is still one of the preferred methods used to launder the proceeds of crime. 

Almost all crime types make use of cash to facilitate money laundering at some stage, not only traditional crimes which generate cash profits, but also threats now arising from new technologies such as virtual currencies, where cash is used as an instrument to disguise the criminal origin of proceeds.

In the EU, the use of cash is the main reason triggering suspicious transaction reports within the financial system, accounting for more than 30% of all reports. Reports on detections of suspicious physical cash movements represent around one third of all contributions to Europol in the area of money laundering.

Linking cash to criminal activities remains a key challenge for law enforcement. “The use of cash by criminals remains one of the most significant barriers to successful investigations and prosecution,” says Rob Wainwright, Director of Europol. “It is a threat that has not received sufficient international attention or legislative solutions. A fragmented enforcement approach at national and international level, and the differing regulatory frameworks across the EU Member States, are widely exploited by criminals, who adapt their methods and routes to take advantage of these loopholes. Stepping up efforts to increase international cooperation and information exchange, and establishing a more harmonised approach among EU Member States concerning cash movements within the EU, are crucial if we are to tackle these criminal activities.”

One of the prevalent methods used by criminals to launder profits remains physical cash smuggling. It is difficult to assess the scale of this criminal activity, but highly conservative estimates based on records received by Europol show that EUR 1.5 billion in cash is detected and/or seized by EU Member State authorities each year.

The findings of ‘Why is cash still king?’ are reflected in a set of recommendations aimed at providing practical solutions which could assist in preventing the use of cash for criminal purposes as well as enabling investigators to achieve higher rates of successful convictions.

The report is dedicated to Clément Gorrissen and Simon Davis of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), who lost their lives in the line of duty in their devoted efforts to combat criminal finances in troubled areas of the world.

(1) EUR 1 trillion as of end 2014 (Source: European Central Bank).

Although the use of cash for payments has experienced a moderate decline in the EU, the demand for high denomination notes not commonly used for payments, such as the EUR 500 note, has been sustained. The EUR 500 note alone accounts for over 30% of the value of all banknotes in circulation. This raises questions about the purpose for which they are being used and whether this could be linked to criminal activity, which should be further explored.

College of Policing

Is cash still king?

Published on 1 December 2024

Written by Emma Barker, Financial Investigations Manager, Eastern Region Special Operations Unit

https://www.college.police.uk/article/cash-still-king

Key Points:

• The general appeal of cash has been recognised in research. In some societies and countries, a mistrust of banks and governments makes it preferable (FATF, 2015). The anonymity of cash is also particularly appealing to criminals. Due to the ability to bypass financial institutions, there is much less likelihood for there to be a record of a cash transaction than an online banking transaction. There is equally less likelihood of suspicious cash transactions being reported to the authorities than ones that involve financial accounts. It is noted that the lower risk of detection means that criminals who use cash feel the benefits are significant (Riccardi and Levi, 2018).

• The emergence of cryptocurrency has created opportunities for criminals who view it as a means safer from detection than cash. It enables faster payments across borders than traditional cash means. That said, many criminals are familiar with cash and, like many of the general population, find the concept of cryptocurrency confusing and difficult to buy into (Cassara, 2020). 

• In 2010, 56% of all payments were made in cash, which decreased to just 17% in 2020 (UK Finance, 2021). This trend is expected to continue, or become even starker since COVID-19, and the general shift towards a cashless economy. It is argued that the societal move towards a digital economy could result in a substantial reduction in criminal activity and tax evasion (Hendrickson and Luther, 2019), particularly with transactions becoming more auditable. The future of society is clearly changing. But the impact this future will have on the continued use of cash by criminals is yet to be seen.

• The results of the questionnaire were analysed under the following four themes. 1. Use of cash by criminals. 2. Attraction of cash 3. Levels of criminality 4. The future of cash.

• Almost all respondents felt that criminal use of cash was still prevalent. Many cited that it is heavily linked to the drug trade. It was suggested that cash was used: "…to traffic drugs, people, to gain youngsters and promote joining of gangs to become part of County Lines. Cash still talks and impresses." The appeal of cash in the way it is produced was offered by one financial investigator as an explanation for its popularity: ‘It is, in the UK, harder for law enforcement to show drugs contamination due to the notes being waterproof.’ More than three quarters (76%) felt that cash was one of the main ways in which criminal money was laundered. When reviewing the detail behind the answers, there was a perception among many that cash was still important to criminals to fund their high-end lifestyles.

• When asked whether cash smuggling was still prevalent in society, 61.19% agreed. However, compared with the other questions, 29.85% of respondents were neutral on this point. This could indicate that they felt they didn’t have enough knowledge to answer one way or the other. It is of note that the status that is often associated with criminals who use cash was only identified by those working in law enforcement. One police officer noted: "With wealth comes power, control, respect, security and freedom. It also means they can have what they want".

• It was again apparent only from those who worked in law enforcement that criminals who use cash are not likely to be those at the top tier of criminality. It was a theme noticed across several respondents that criminals who used cash are more likely to be at a ‘lower tier’ of offending. It was also a theme among the law enforcement practitioners that criminals in higher tiers of criminality are less likely to use cash.

• The emergence of cryptocurrencies was identified across the responses as a prominent theme. It was noted how cryptocurrencies provide opportunities for criminals and threats to law enforcement who try to investigate it. The move to a cashless economy was noted by almost all, with 86.57% believing the economy was heading in this direction. Most also said their own personal use of cash was significantly less, if not non-existent. Regarding the effect this would have on crime, there was much less certainty. However, 47.76% disagreed or strongly disagreed that a cashless economy would reduce crime.

• An overarching theme from across the questionnaire results and the research study was that the untraceable nature of cash made it attractive to criminals. The upward trajectory of society becoming more cashless doesn’t offer criminals the same safety net that cash does. Although there is a risk of it being stolen or seized, the much lower risk of reporting suspicious transactions or enabling law enforcement to trace the source makes it an attractive option.

• My aim was to test the assertion by Europol that ‘cash is king’. However, my research enabled me to comment with credibility that society is changing, becoming more cashless and moving to a digital economy. Criminals have by and large resisted this change and continue to use cash.

（推介原因：英國女警寫的研究報告。作者向前線警員發問卷收集意見，研究罪犯對現金的態度和使用方法，結論是現金在洗黑錢的世界中依然有無法取代的位置。當中有個有趣的觀察，就是犯罪集團的低級成員喜歡使用現金，因為可以用來購買實物，為自己打造一個富貴身份。犯罪集團的高級成員較少使用現金，因為他們無需炫耀身份。這個道理，看過港產片的讀者一定懂，戴著重量級金鍊招搖過市的，通常是小混混，不會是黑幫大哥。真正的黑幫大哥是高級行政人員打扮，又或者看起來似個大老闆。）

US Immigration and Customs Enforcement

FAQ: Bulk Cash Smuggling

Combating Bulk Cash Smuggling

https://www.ice.gov/hsi/centers-labs/bcsc/faq

Excerpt: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) is the largest investigative agency in the Department of Homeland Security. ICE HSI enforces a wide array of laws, including those related to financial crime, trade fraud, counterfeiting and cash smuggling. 

In recent years, the smuggling of bulk currency has become a preferred method for drug trafficking organizations and other criminal enterprises to move illicit proceeds across our borders.

Congress criminalized the act of smuggling large amounts of cash as part of the PATRIOT Act.

Bulk Cash Smuggling is a reporting offense under the Bank Secrecy Act, and is part of the United States Code (U.S.C.). The code stipulates:

Whoever, with the intent to evade a currency reporting requirement, knowingly conceals more than $10,000 in currency or other monetary instruments on the person of such individual or in any conveyance, article of luggage, merchandise, or other container, and transports or transfers or attempts to transport or transfer such currency or monetary instruments from a place within the United States to a place outside of the United States, or from a place outside the United States to a place within the United States, shall be guilty of a currency smuggling offense.

US Immigration and Customs Enforcement

National Bulk Cash Smuggling Center

https://www.ice.gov/hsi/centers-labs/bcsc

Transnational criminal organizations (TCOs) generate significant proceeds from several criminal activities, to include narcotics smuggling, human smuggling/trafficking, fraud, intellectual property right violations & other financial crimes.

These profits often come in the form of currency or cash and are smuggled by TCOs throughout the United States and across U.S. borders to keep their proceeds away from the scrutiny of financial regulators and law enforcement agencies.

Criminal actors may try to avoid traditional financial institutions by sending their illicit proceeds through commercial and private aircraft, passenger and commercial vehicles, ships and via pedestrian crossings at our land borders.

The National Bulk Cash Smuggling Center (BCSC) was established in 2009 to combat bulk cash smuggling. The BCSC provides real-time operational support to federal, state, local and international agencies involved in the enforcement and interdiction of bulk value and illicit proceeds moved throughout the country and across international borders.

As TCOs have evolved and embraced technological advances and emerging financial sectors to diversify their laundering methods, the BCSC has also adapted its focus to include stored value, pre-paid cards, and digital currency or virtual assets. HSI and the BCSC remain committed to combatting currency smuggling, illicit value transfer and cross-border crimes that seek to undermine our financial systems.

Criminal dollars, Trump’s crypto trapdoor, and Dalek solicitors

Oliver Bullough

Coda Story

13 August 2025

https://www.codastory.com/oligarchy/criminal-dollars-trumps-crypto-trapdoor-and-dalek-solicitors/

Excerpt: Ordinary people are using cash money less and less in everyday life, so logically the amount of banknotes in circulation should be falling. Particularly at a time of high inflation, when a non-interest-bearing form of money is losing value all the time. This is what is happening in the eurozone, where the value of cash in circulation hit its all-time high in June 2022 of €1,602.6 billion, which was €16.2 billion more than the total today.

In the United States, on the other hand, the total number of dollars in circulation hits a new high every month, and in July reached $2,399.538 billion. That is an increase of $121.6 billion since June 2022, or just over five percent. The only people willing to hold paper currency when inflation is high are people who have a compelling reason not to care, and I think the only significant group of people that meet that requirement are criminals who seek anonymity.

So while financial markets may find an alternative to the mighty dollar, at least the United States can count on the continued custom of the world’s criminals. Interestingly, the pound is behaving more like the dollar than the euro, with the total in circulation having increased by 5.9 percent since June 2022 to £93.6 billion. And the same is true of the Canadian dollar (up three percent). So I suppose an alternative explanation is that criminals just like speaking English?

Donald Trump’s $250 gift to launderers and criminals

Oliver Bullough

Coda Story

2 June 2026

https://www.codastory.com/oligarchy/donald-trumps-250-gift-to-launderers-and-criminals/

It has become a theme of this newsletter to lay out what is needed to tackle financial crime, and then to point out how the U.S. government is doing the opposite, and I assure you that I am as bored of it as you are. I try therefore to avoid writing about Donald Trump any more than I have to, but I’m afraid I very much do have to address the subject of the $250 bill.

Criminals adore banknotes, thanks to their anonymity and convenience, and that love has only grown as the financial system has become more regulated. They love high-denomination banknotes most of all, because they let criminals move a lot of value in the smallest possible space.

This is why the proportion of $100 bills among the banknotes printed by the Federal Reserve increases year after year. Two decades ago, $100 bills made up 64.4% of the value of outstanding dollar banknotes; at the end of 2025, it was 81.8%. And the total number of notes has increased massively: 5.4 billion in late 2005; 19.9 billion last December.

If I could click my fingers and make one thing happen to stop money laundering, it would be to stop central banks printing large denomination banknotes (as has happened in the past in Singapore, and in the Eurozone). The Federal Reserve is not the only offender — the European Central Bank still has €200 bills, the Swiss have 1000 franc notes, the Brits have £50 notes – but the $100 is by far the most widespread of these big bills and thus the most egregious example. There are almost four times more of them in circulation than all the big euro-denominated bills added together.

So what is the White House doing about the problem of large denomination bank notes? “Trump administration officials have pressed the office responsible for printing the nation’s money to design a $250 bill featuring the president’s portrait,” reports the Washington Post. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said he didn’t think that there was anything “untoward” about having the current president of the United States on the 250th anniversary bill.

Look, I like the word “semiquincentennial” as much as anyone else who has had to squint at it for a while to work out what it means. And I appreciate that Americans are rightly proud of how long their republic lasted before beginning to turn into a monarchy, but it would be nice if someone in power at least acknowledged how grotesque it is to float the idea of printing a banknote that’s even more useful to criminals than the existing ones.

Kenneth Rijock 的貼文

MIAMI'S MONEY LAUNDERERS ARE PARTYING LIKE IT'S 1980, AFTER THE TREASURY SECRETARY TOUTS A USD$250 BILL

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/kenneth-rijock-2b8419a_miamis-money-launderers-are-partying-like-activity-7466086164966322177-8K4O?rcm=ACoAAAfplGUByyc4TTjRahGeIcksY69567w_dxo

Miami money launderers, where Bulk Cash Smuggling is revered by its resident drug money launderers as the perfect instrument to evade reporting requirements, must still be celebrating this morning, in an all-night champagne party, after the Secretary of the Treasury held up a proposed Trump USD$250 note. Doesn't he realize that any bill denominated over $100 is pure success for the money laundering industry? 

Who does he think owns and holds all the €500 notes inside the EU? That item is a favorite tool of Euro-laundrymen, and most of them are currently located within Spain, where they are legendary performers. Before the EU adopted the Euro, I went on record warning that this large note would end upo in their hands; if you look, you can still see my blunt warning online, which I delivered to the UK press more than two decades ago. Nobody in Brussels listened, and look at the result.

The larger the value of paper currency, the easier it is to bulk cash smuggle it through international borders, within consumer goods being exported, and even inside or on human beings. As a practising money launderer for a decade, I moved bulk cash weekly into the Tax Havens of the Caribbean, and was never detained or interdicted in the act. Do we really want to see an explosion of Bulk Cash Smuggling, back bigger than before? Europe is still trying to fix that colossal mistake.

I beseech the Treasury Department to forthwith withdraw this crazy proposal, before it gains any momentum. A $250 bill would seriously set back anti-money laundering, bringing back the ineffective "Miami Vice" days of the 1980s, but with a vengeance; Do not allow this folly to proceed, please. This old money launderer knows better.

Organised crime fears cause ban on 500 euro note sales

By Dominic Casciani

BBC News home affairs correspondent

13 May 2010

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/8678886.stm?trk=public_post_comment-text

Key Points:

• Exchange offices in the Uk have stopped selling 500 euro banknotes because of their ues by money launderers. The move means nobody will be able to buy the note in teh UK - but travellers will be able to sell them if they enter the UK carrying them from abroad.

• The British trade in the notes is thought to be worth some 500 million euros - but less than 10% of them are bought by legitimate tourists and business travellers. Financial crime investigators concluded that there was no credible or legitimate use for the note in the UK.

• The Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA) says 90% of the notes sold in the UK are in the hands of organised crime. SOCA deputy director Ian Cruxton said 500 euros had become the currency of choice for gangs hiding their profits. SOCA says that an eight-month analysis of movements of the note in the UK revealed that it was almost exclusively used by money launderers shifting cash for major crime gangs.

• There have been widespread concerns among law enforcement agencies over the role of the 500 euro in money laundering, concerns that are identical to those raised about other similar high-value notes around the world.

• The European Central Bank created the note at the time of monetary union to replace high value notes which were popular in some of the Eurozone countries.

• There has been mounting international concern over the note, which is worth more than £400, and its use by criminals or tax evaders.

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