Over the past several years, access to financial services have become increasingly difficult for civil society organizations that must conduct international financial transactions in order to operate overseas where their work is needed most. Financial institutions may delay, or refuse to make, transfers between organizations. Sometimes, nonprofit organizations (NPOs) are turned away as customers or have their accounts closed. Remittance services that facilitate fund transfers between diaspora populations and their families are threatened by the international banking system’s growing unwillingness to provide these services.
The U.S. government has said that banks should not “de-risk” but that policy has not been translated into concrete action or regulatory standards that remove current disincentives for banks to provide services to international NPOs. As a result, money will be taken out of transparent, regulated channels, making life more difficult for legitimate NPOs and easier for terrorist financiers.
Featured Resources
National Counter-Terrorist Finance Strategy Cites Important Role of Charities
In an update to its National Strategy for Combating Terrorist and Other Illicit Financing, the U.S. Treasury Department cites the important role of charities in countering terrorism, emphasizes the use of the risk-based approach, and
ILLICIT CASH Act Introduced in Senate
After circulating a discussion draft for several months, the Senate introduced its version of a Bank Secrecy Act bill with the ILLICIT CASH Act (S. 2563) on September 26, 2019. Congressional efforts to update
House-Passed Bill Orders Report on Derisking
The U.S. House of Representatives on October 25, 2019, passed a bill designed to update the Bank Secrecy Act for the first time since the PATRIOT Act. The bill contains report language that could add
Task Force on Humanitarian Access Releases Recommendations, Report
The Task Force on Humanitarian Access, co-chaired by Senators Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Todd Young (R-IN), released Denial, Delay, Diversion: Tackling Access Challenges in an Evolving Humanitarian Landscape on Sept. 18. The Task Force, launched by the Center
Banks can manage antilaundering risk from charities, ‘derisking’ of sector must stop, experts say
Brett Wolf, Regulatory Intelligence reporter at Thompson Reuters Accelus, writes about Banking for Nonprofits - The Way Forward, a recent publication from the Consortium for Financial Access, which the Charity & Security Network (C&SN) is a member of. Andrea
The Queen’s Speech
Bank derisking, one of the most significant threats to non-profit organizations (NPOs) and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), just got a publicity boost by none other than Queen Máxima of the Netherlands, who also serves as