Corruption is a cancer, a disease the eats away at society. But what exactly is it? A cancer, yes, good one. But can you define it? Generally, when in the news it is thought of as immoral acts by politicians, taking or doing things they shouldn't be in their positions of power. We drill down a bit into this complex subject, firstly a few definitions below. Transparency International (TI); "The abuse of entrusted power for private gain." The World Bank & International Monetary Fund (IMF); "abuse of public office for private gain." The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD); "active or passive misuse of the powers of Public officials (appointed or elected) for private financial or other benefits." Professor Daniel Hough states a potential four pronged approach. It will be; deliberate. an abuse of position. an abuse of entrusted power. If they don't have power they can't be corrupt. for private gain. The individual and/or their associated people or entities will benefit. In a 2008 paper, Andersson and Heywood go for; “…the misuse of power in the interests of illicit gain.” There are a bunch of others, but we like the last one here. It is quite broad, but that allows it to cover both government and companies. The nuance comes with types of corruption and on what stages it occurs.

We'll give you a non-exhaustive list. It's pretty self explanatory but you can see how the idea of misuse of power for illicit gain can be applied to many situations. Bribery - the offering, promising, giving, accepting or soliciting of an advantage as an inducement for an action which is illegal, unethical or a breach of trust. Cronyism - favouring friends/members of one's group over more qualified unrelated candidates. Embezzlement - theft by employee from an employer (firm, government, NGO). Extortion - the practice of obtaining something, especially money, through force or threats. Influence peddling - Using one's power of decision in government to obtain bribes or favours. Kleptocracy - A state exploited by a ruler with absolute power for the personal benefit/wealth of the ruling elite. Lobbying - any attempt by individuals or private interest groups to influence the decisions of government. This comes in both legal and illegal forms, but both are immoral according to us. Nepotism - hiring family members over other more qualified unrelated candidates. Patronage - the power to control appointments to government office or the right to privileges. Etcetera, etcetera...

Anticorruption is pretty much what it sounds like. It refers to activities that oppose or attempt to inhibit corruption. Many actors are involved; government departments/agencies, international charities, corporations and financial institutions. They employ strategies with varying focus on collaboration, prevention, prosecution and education. It is a complex subject due to the many types of corruption, each potentially needing its own approach in relation to investigation, prevention and punishment. R&C is anticorruption to the bone, we oppose, want to inhibit and eradicate it. Corruption is a hellacious son of a bitch.

Global Witness - Anti-Corruption & Human Rights Campaigners, follow the money. Transparency International - NGO Combating Global Corruption. Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) - like it says on the tin - leading the fight!

Basically, it is the process of trying to clean up the appearance of your ill-gotten gains, concealing the origins of the proceeds of crime and eventually making it appear legitimate. The common methodology is one of three phases, placement, layering and integration. Placement - the launderer introduces his illegal profits into the financial system. Layering - the launderer engages in a series of conversions or movements of the funds to distance them from their source. Integration - the funds re-enter the legitimate economy. The launderer might choose to invest the funds into real estate, luxury assets, or business ventures.

Anti-Money Laundering refers to the attempted activities that financial institutions perform to attempt to achieve compliance with legal requirements; including actively monitoring transactions, conducting continuous 'know your customer' due diligence checks, and reporting suspicious activities. Note the emphasis on attempts, they allegedly try their hardest. The motivation for banks though is likely not to stop criminals but, to avoid being fined by regulators. Protecting the financial system from criminal exploitation is secondary because, they have to keep the shareholders happy, profits over people... source: financialcrimenews.com Links below to news stories (will open new tab). Goldman Sachs 2021 - Malaysia, 1MDB scandal - Link Westpac 2020 - Australia, Child Exploitation - Link ING 2018 - Netherlands, general failings - Link JP Morgan 2014 - US, Bernie Madoff Ponzi scheme - Link HSBC 2012 - Mexico, Cartel activity- Link This is just a taste, there are dozens more, each one failing the banks customers and citizens of the world in general.

The EU sixth money laundering directive (6MLD) is the European regulation that empowers financial institutions and authorities to fight the money laundering and terrorist financing. It includes guidance and goals for legislation and criminal penalties. The below are the predicate crimes listed in 6MLD. The various offences and categories of offence that lead to the creation of dirty money - that then needs to be cleaned. There is a bad stuff going on out there, a lot of bad people trying to get their dirty cash into banks so they can manufacture their funds to eventually appear legitimate. source: comply advantage You've had a look at that list now think about how many criminals are out there, on this planet, doing atrocious and outrageous acts. You've seen Breaking Bad, Narcos and Ozark (if you haven't, get on it). All that cash has to go somewhere otherwise the rats will eat it...

https://www.fatf-gafi.org/faq/moneylaundering/ - Financial Action Taskforce Know Your Country - Comprehensive information on country risk. Global Financial Integrity - Illicit Financial Flow Research and Reporting.