"Money laundering is the processing of these criminal proceeds to disguise their illegal origin" (Financial Action Task Force on Money Laundering - FATF)

"Money laundering involves disguising financial assets so they can be used without detection of the illegal activity that produced them. Through money laundering, the criminal transforms the monetary proceeds derived from criminal activity into funds with an apparently legal source" (Financial Crimes Enforcement Network - FINCEN: United States Department of Treasury)

Those criminal activities may be drugs, arms traffic, corruption and any mode of the organized crime.

Money laundering has terrible effects on the countries because:

• avoids the detection of the criminal activities
• provides new resources to the criminal activities
• distorts financial markets
• destroy the real business activities generating a virtual capitalism

Download the USA SENATE REPORT ON MONEY LAUNDERING

The 40 Recommendation of the FATF

FATF: Financial Action Task Force

FINCEN: Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (United States Department of Treasury)