The Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC) has issued new guidance related to financial crime to inform and warn stakeholders about the ML method known as ‘cuckoo smurfing’. Highlights from this guidance are discussed below.
Financial criminals are using the ‘cuckoo smurfing’ method to bring illegal funds into Australia in a concealed manner. This method of ML misuses the legitimate bank accounts of Australia-based persons and businesses. The criminals strike at a time when the Australian account holders are expecting to receive genuine funds into their account from friends, family or business partners residing abroad. Because of this, the recipients do not realize that the funds they received in their accounts actually originated from illicit activities such as drug trafficking etc.
AUSTRAC’s new guidance on ‘cuckoo smurfing’ informs businesses and the public about how to identify this form of ML and report it to AUSTRAC. Briefly, AUSTRAC’s guidance recommends that money transfer businesses and financial institutions should monitor suspicious activities in their customers’ accounts. These activities include inconsistent or irregular cash deposits in an account, multiple same-day cash deposits in different branches in amounts under $10,000, etc.
AUSTRAC has also recommended that the general public, when expecting overseas funds in their accounts, should monitor their account activity. They should promptly report any irregular or suspicious transactions. AUSTRAC has also pointed out that Australian expatriates and exporters and international students studying in Australia are among the most vulnerable groups for cuckoo smurfing.
Source: AUSTRAC