Program content
“…Thus began the fierce endeavour of the State to squeeze the population to the last drop. Since economic resources fell short of what was needed, the strong fought to secure the chief share for themselves ..... The full rigour of the law was let loose on the population. Soldiers acted as bailiffs or wandered as secret police through the land. Those who suffered most were the propertied class. It was relatively easy to lay hands on their property, and in an emergency, they were the class from whom something could be extorted most frequently and quickly…”
Too fanciful? Well, this is a direct quotation taken from The Cambridge Ancient History on the decline of the Roman Empire, at a time when ordinary citizens learned that their civic independence had disappeared. As the money required to sustain civic control ran out and the Empire collapsed, the citizens found themselves the victims of a State-turned-predator.
The controllers sought more ways to justify the seizure of property as the citizens looked to escape, taking with them as much as they could. As more attempted to escape the tax collectors, the State increased the pressure upon those who remained.
The relevance of these historical anecdotes to a contemporary discussion on money laundering will become apparent as I attempt to deconstruct and re-evaluate the reasons why international money laundering legislation has reached its present stage, and why there is still more room for it to grow. And grow it will! Today, I assert that the overriding purpose of the rapid development of global anti-money laundering laws, and the powers to confiscate assets which accompany them, are intended primarily to counter the growing international phenomenon of capital flight and tax evasion.
Participant level of understanding
This program is intended for participants with a basic or intermediate level of understanding on the topic.
Prerequisites:
There are no prerequisites for this seminar.
Advance Preparation
There is no advanced preparation required for this seminar.
About Rowan Bosworth-Davies
Rowan Bosworth-Davies is widely recognised as a leading international expert, educator and consultant in the field of fraud prevention and anti-money laundering awareness with over 25 years practical and theoretical experience of the investigation and prosecution of fraud and white-collar crime.
As well as being the former editor of the ‘Financial Times Fraud Report’, Rowan sits on the Money Laundering Editorial Board of Complinet. He is a legal consultant and a former Fraud Squad detective at New Scotland Yard, and ran the investigations division of one of the UK’s financial Self Regulating Organisations for two years.
He has provided training and compliance programmes for the Bank of England, the U.K. National Criminal Intelligence Service, the National Police Staff College, Bramshill; as well as providing consultancy to the Money Laundering Steering Group of the British Bankers' Association.
