Overview

• FinCEN issued an alert alongside a Financial Trends Analysis that describes Chinese money‑laundering networks as global and omnipresent threats to the U.S. financial system.
• U.S. institutions filed 137,153 suspicious activity reports from 2020 to 2024 totaling about $312 billion, including 17,389 real estate‑linked reports worth roughly $53.7 billion.
• The assessment says the networks buy cartel cash in the United States and deliver equivalent value to Chinese clients seeking to bypass currency controls, exploiting gaps created by rules in Mexico and China.
• FinCEN highlights tactics such as mirror transactions, trade‑based laundering, use of money mules with false documents, and infiltration of financial institutions.
• The alert links the activity to fentanyl trafficking, fraud, human trafficking and elder‑abuse schemes, and it urges stronger controls, enhanced reporting and coordination with law enforcement and international partners.