The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network is a bureau of the US Department of the Treasury that aims to safeguard the financial system from illicit use, prevent and punish domestic and international money laundering, and promote national security by collecting and analyzing information about financial transactions required under the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA). It consists of law-enforcement agencies, the regulatory community, and the financial services community.
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Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN)
Frequently asked questions
Is FinCEN a law enforcement agency?
While the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) offers information to support financial criminal investigations, it is not a law enforcement agency. According to FinCEN's website, the role of this agency is to “support federal, state, local, and international law enforcement by analyzing the information required under the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA).”
What is FinCEN money laundering?
As defined by FinCEN, money laundering is the practice of disguising the origins of financial assets so they appear to have come from a legitimate source and can be used without detection of the original, illegal activity that produced them.
What is FinCEN regulation?
The mission of FinCEN is to combat money laundering and protect the nation’s financial systems from abuse by criminals. It achieves this goal in part through regulatory processes, which involve the “collection, analysis, and dissemination of financial intelligence” to identify suspicious transactions.