Part I The International Law of Tainted Money, 2 International Legal Sources I—the United Nations Conventions

Subject(s):

Regulation of banks — Criminal proceedings — Money laundering — Conduct of business regulation — Financial Action Taskforce (FATF)

This chapter looks at the origins of the international regulation of tainted money. This has its origins in laws concerning drugs, in particular the illicit production and trafficking of drugs and the connection of that trade to organised crime. More recently, terrorism, whether financed from the proceeds of crime or tainted money or with legitimate funds, has come under the rubric of the international regulation of tainted money as well. The chapter describes how the principal international initiatives in the development of international law and standards in these areas have been at the levels of the United Nations (UN) and the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). The UN conventions and UN Security Council resolutions as well as the FATF Recommendations, the chapter concludes, should be kept in view when considering proceeds of crime and tainted money. This chapter provides a framework for understanding these instruments, including their implications for domestic law and practice.