Electronic Payment Systems and Money Laundering

Over the last ten years, the continuing demateralization of money and the advent of the Internet, electronic commerce, and mobile communications have led to the introduction of a myriad of new electronic payment systems. These systems have the potential to make payments more efficient and to enable anyone to carry out transactions with anybody. However, they reputedly also have the potential to greatly facilitate the crime of money laundering. In this respect, electronic payment systems have been called the greatest boon th money launderers and have even been presented as one fo the four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. Now that the hype surrounding the Internet has subsided, the time is right to make an assessment of the true money laundering threat posed by electronic payment systems. To this end, Electronic Payment Systems and Money Laudering offers an in-depth look at the issues invoved, containing a wealth of information about payment processing, money laundering techniques and countermeasures, and a wide range of electronic payment systems. Special attention is given to transaction monitoring, the latest development in anti-money laundering measures. All these issues are discussed from both technical and legal angles, taking into account global as well as Dutch developments. After careful analysis based on the available evidence, it si concluded that, in contrast to the above-mentioned claims, law enforcers are nowadays perhaps better positioned than ever in the fight against money laudnering. Ton Schudelaro is a research at the Centre for Law, Public Administration and Informatisation at Tilburg University in the Netherlands.