WILL MONEY LAUNDERERS MOVE THEIR CLIENTS OUT OF THE EURO ?

Whilst the nascent Anti-Euro movement is Germany is not likely to generate sufficient power to actually move that country out of the Eurozone, the Cypriot uproar over the Brussels solution to Cyprus' financial problems, and with general sentiment in wealthier countries of the EU opposed to infinite bailouts of the nations in distress, one must consider the possibility of at least some nations taking that step, and the consequences thereof. Money launderers for organised crime groups always are looking five to seven years in the future, and surely some of them are now entertaining moving their clients' illicit, but washed, assets, out of the Euro for risk management purposes.

Why is this of interest to international bankers ? The best money laundering programmes always appear to be well-established legitimate businesses that have been your clients for many years. They are rarely under the microscope at your Compliance division. They may, however, have to break cover to convert funds, or move the funds to an offshore financial centre where they can be readily converted.

This is not a paranoid musing, but a word to the wise, in a risk-based world, a prudent move. to keep an eye out for any extremely large request, from an established client, to move their wealth out of the Euro, into other currencies; Check them out, please.